Breaking Perdition
by Lyndotia
Summary: Lyn and Jordan, two witches from Tennessee, transfer into Spenser Academy trying to escape from their past. But what happens when they meet warlocks they never knew existed and what they were running from begins to catch up with them?
1. The Class of Spenser Academy

Disclaimer: Neither Jordan nor I own The Covenant or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N: Lyn: :O We're writing a Covenant fic?!

Jordan: Indeed we are! Because Lyn is a genius and was talking about how awesome it is so I bought it and now I'm hooked too!

Lyn: It was the shirtless guys, wasn't it?

Jordan: … Maybe partially. Anyway, review!

---

**1. The Class of Spenser Academy**

"Don't worry so much," 18-year-old Lyn Elumo said as she drove her purple Pontiac GTO into the parking lot of Spenser Academy. It looked pretty out of place there among the high-dollar cars even without the fuzzy black dice with purple flames hanging from the rearview mirror and the Tennessee license plate.

She was currently speaking to her 16-year-old sister, Jordan, who sat in the passenger seat. "It's a good school. One of those gateway-to-the-Ivy-League deals they don't have in Pierce."

"That doesn't change the fact that it's a new school and I don't know anyone. Oh and that tiny little fact, in case you forgot, that we're witches! And every time I get close to someone I have to end up pushing them away so they don't find out…" Jordan sighed, sitting with her combat boots up on the dashboard, her arms crossed, and her face forlorn.

"It's better than repeating everything with Dad," Lyn said quietly as she put the car in park. "And you know you have to take those shoes off. There's a dress code here." She made a face. "Evil freaking skirts…"

"Let them give me detentions… Like hell I'm taking off my boots. They're the ones with steel toes, in case worse comes to worse…" Jordan smirked wryly at Lyn and clicked her toes together.

Lyn rolled her eyes. "You're a witch, Einstein. You don't _need_ steel-toed boots. Your Power doesn't have any backlash to it yet."

"Doesn't hurt to be completely prepared," Jordan said smugly, opening her door and swinging her legs around to get out of the car, smoothing her skirt as she went.

"Yeah, you can tell that to the teachers," Lyn said, rolling her eyes as she got out, too. "But really, this has to be one of the safest places to be. After Salem, this is the last place anyone would think to look for us."

"I hope so," Jordan mumbled as she shut the door and looked around, taking in her surroundings more fully.

"Prissy prep school to the extreme," Lyn said with a sigh. "And in the heart of Yankeeville. All the more reason they wouldn't look for us here."

"Yeah, you're right." At that moment, the bell rang. "Oh, look, we're late," Jordan said, shooting her sister a side glance.

"Great first impression," Lyn muttered with a sigh. "I think this is your building, I'll go look for mine…"

"Okay. See you after school, sis." And with that, Jordan ran off to find her first class. Opening the door, she stepped in and pushed her hair out of her face, looking around. "Sorry I'm late, got a little lost…"

"Jordan Elumo? Sit in the available seat in the front," the teacher said, gesturing toward the seat in question.

Jordan sighed and sat down, feeling dozens of eyes on her as she smoothed her skirt with as much dignity as she could muster and at down. Looking to her left, she saw a prissy looking girl (unsurprising). Looking to her right, she saw a boy with sandy hair who didn't look quite as vicious as the rest at least.

"Hi – Jordan?" the boy asked, smiling pleasantly. "I'm Isaac."

Jordan turned her head to the boy next to her. "Uh, hi…" She then moved her gaze back to the front of the room and, biting her lip, tried to ignore his eyes on her.

Isaac looked a little dejected but recovered quickly. "If you got lost, I can show you around later," he offered.

"Uh, my sister can help me find my way. And I have my schedule right here so I can find my way. Thanks though." She muttered the last part almost inaudibly.

"Oh," Isaac said slowly. "Okay then. Just, you know, if you ever need anything…"

"Yeah, thanks," Jordan said, smiling slightly.

---

Lyn tapped gingerly on the pane of glass in the window of the door to the classroom as she finally found the right one. "Um… hi? I know I'm late but I kind of got lost…"

"New student?" The teacher didn't wait for a response as she looked at her seating chart. "Lyndotia Elumo. Please sit in any available seat for now."

Lyn's mouth twitched at the use of her full name but she scanned the room and took the closest seat on the second row before muttering under her breath, "Lyn. _Lyn_ Elumo."

A blond boy watched sat Lyn sat down, staring her up and down. He raised an eyebrow as his eyes reached her long, bare legs and smirked. When the teacher turned back to the board and resumed lecturing, he leaned forward and whispered to her, "Hey."

Lyn's green eyes were wary as she looked at him without turning her head. Her voice was just as carefully emotionless as she said slowly, "Hello…"

"Lyndotia, right? I'm Reid." He held out his hand to shake but, after a few long seconds of her not holding out hers, he withdrew it and cocked his head to the side at her unresponsiveness to him.

Lyn's jaw twitched more noticeably this time and she couldn't help correcting, "It's Lyn."

"Oh, sorry… Lyn," Reid said, grinning slightly and leaning down in his seat, still staring at her.

Inhaling deeply through her nose as a calming measure, Lyn turned her head to glare at him. "If you're going to leer at me, at least learn to do it a little more subtly."

"Oh, was I? I'm sorry, I just can't help myself." Reid smirked slightly and turned his attention back to the front of the room, shifting in his seat.

Lyn sighed and looked back to the front too, pinching the bridge of her nose to ward off a headache. This had the makings of a very long first day.


	2. Everybody Hates Gym

Disclaimer: Neither Jordan nor I own The Covenant or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N:

---

**2. Everybody Hates Gym**

"Well, would you look at that!" Lyn said with a crooked grin as she walked into the gym and saw none other than Jordan. "They let shrimps in the same gym classes here!"

Reid, who was following behind her so he could watch her walk, looked affronted. She wouldn't talk to him but she would talk to some underclassman?

"Oh, shut up, Lyn. I'm not a shrimp, I just haven't grown into myself yet." Jordan grinned crookedly and grabbed her sister's hand. "Come now, sister, let us change!"

She smirked and then caught a glance of the guy behind her. "Who's the shadow?" she muttered.

Lyn rolled her eyes and responded in a low voice, "Some perv from homeroom. C'mon, he can't follow us into the girls' locker room."

"Right…" Jordan pulled Lyn long with her into the locker room to get into their swimsuits. "Y'know… That dude's gonna get a kick out of you in a swimsuit." She nudged Lyn in the shoulder as she pulled a one piece out of her gym bag.

"Yeah, like my heel against his skull," Lyn muttered darkly.

"Oh, now that's something I wanna see!" Jordan grinned and grabbed a towel, pulling her dyed auburn hair into a ponytail at the base of her neck.

Lyn pretended to be offended. "Are you saying you doubt my ability to kick people in the face? Have you forgotten Kyle already? Not that I would care if you did, frankly I'd rather forget him, but in this instance he makes a good example."

Jordan closed her locker and cocked her head to the side as she walked to the door. "It's not that I doubt your ability to, it's just that every time you actually do, it's a sight to behold."

Lyn snickered and tossed a towel over her shoulder. "I wonder if I could knock him unconscious long enough for him to drown in the pool…?"

Jordan walked out of the locker room, grinning and pushing her bangs off her face. "It's entirely possible."

---

Reid grumbled under his breath as he approached three others into the locker room who were also pulling on their swimsuits. "The girls at this school are teases," he said as he pulled his shirt off and grabbed his suit out of his locker.

Tyler snickered. "Strike out again?"

"Yeah, some chick who showed up late to homeroom. Dude, legs up to her neck. She didn't even show _any_ interest. I mean, what's wrong with the girls here?!" he yelled, mostly to himself.

"Dude, just let it go. Find someone else," Pogue said, looking over to Caleb for affirmation.

"Yeah, right. She isn't worth it, man," Caleb said.

"Yeah, don't let her bother you," Tyler chipped in then smirked. "Besides, if she has legs to her neck, she's missing a couple of other important things."

"Dude, just wait until you see her to say that," Reid said, pulling up his suit and grabbing a towel before walking out of the locker room.

"Damn, that bad?" Tyler asked as he slammed his locker and followed his friend. "Which one is she?"

Reid gestured over vaguely at the two girls walking out of the other locker room. "Her."

"Wait, which her?" Pogue looked between the two girls, deciding both were worthy of Reid's spurned attentions, though he recognized the girl with 'legs up to her neck' immediately, and from what he could see, Reid hadn't been exaggerating much.

"The girl with brown hair or red?" Caleb asked.

"Brown – the redhead's her sister, I think," Reid said.

Tyler's eyebrows shot up. "Mm, yeah, I can see why that would upset you… I dunno though, the redhead's pretty hot, too."

Lyn groaned when she felt eyes on them. "Great, now he's got friends. Why do I always attract the psychos and stalkers?"

"It's truly a gift," Jordan said with a laugh and looked over to see a boy with dark hair looking at her. She turned red and looked up at Lyn. "I don't know… That one with the brown-blond shaggy hair is really cute." She smiled slightly.

"Aww, look at that, Tyler – looks like you got the redhead's attention." Caleb shoved him in the shoulder and laughed, dropping his towel on the ground.

"Shut up and go push your girlfriend in the pool or something," Tyler bickered, shoving back.

"Can we forget about Tyler and the redhead and focus on me and that leggy brunette?" Reid complained.

"Yeah, I'm sure they're all staring at our faces," Lyn said acidly. "Come on, let's figure out where we're supposed to be."

"Yeah…" Jordan sighed and, with one last forlorn glance to the boy, followed her sister as they went to the edge of the pool.

"Oh, why don't you go ahead and talk to her!" Caleb said, shoving Tyler toward where the two girls were standing.

"Reid, I think you're just gonna have to accept defeat this time," Pogue said, looking at the brunette's angry expression.

"You only say that because you _have_ a girl," Reid muttered darkly.

"Okay, fine, I will!" Tyler said at last, straightening up and walking toward them, hoping he wasn't about to look like as much of a fool as Reid usually did.

"Uh, hi," he said as he approached with a smile, his eyes on Jordan. "You're the new girls, right? From some small town down south?"

Jordan looked up at the sound of his voice and straightened up from her stretch, her mouth open, looking slightly like a fish out of water. "Uh, yeah, that's us. From Tennessee. Pierce, Tennessee." She smiled slightly. "And you are?"

"Dude, how is _he_ scoring and I'm not?!" Reid hissed to Caleb and Pogue.

"Probably because _he's_ not harassing the brunette," Caleb snickered. "Although she's kinda still glaring like an ice queen. Damn, just how bad did you piss her off?"

Tyler's smile broadened at the encouragement. "I'm Tyler Simms. You never said your name, you know."

"Oh, right. I'm Jordan Elumo and this is my sister, Lyn," she said, blushing a light pink.

"I didn't even do anything!" Reid objected. "I was only checking her out for a little bit! I mean, aren't most girls flattered when guys check them out?"

"Apparently not this one," Pogue said, laughing.

"Thanks, guys, you're real supportive," Reid grumbled. Then he got that look he usually got right before Caleb was forced to come down on him. "Well, maybe she's not a lost cause just yet…"

"Jordan – that's a cool name," Tyler said with a grin. "It's the name of a river, too – does that make you a good swimmer?"

"Actually, it does," Jordan said, grinning. "I've been swimming since I was a little kid."

"Reid!" Caleb said warningly.

"You can't use on some girl!" Pogue added.

"Hey, hey, I never said that!" Reid said defensively. "I just meant it's swimming day, right? So we're on the swim team, so maybe I just prove I'm not some sicko bum is all!"

Pogue rolled his eyes. "You _are_ a sicko bum, Reid."

"Well yeah, but she don't gotta know that," Reid said with a grin as he headed toward the pool. "Wish me luck, guys!"

Pogue stared after him before looking over at Caleb. "You know he's gonna use to try to show off."

Caleb sighed. "Yeah, I know."

Lyn was internally grimacing at Jordan and Tyler's banter so she didn't really notice when Reid climbed onto the diving board. For that matter, she didn't really pay much attention when he yelled for everyone to check out what he was about to do, either. But when he dove and released a surge of The Power to help his form, her head snapped toward him as quickly as if she had just touched a livewire.

"She doesn't look very impressed," Caleb said, frowning.

"No," Pogue agreed, his expression mirroring Caleb's. "She looks… scared."

"My friends and I are on the swim team," Tyler was saying. "Maybe if you wanted you could –"

The next second, Lyn grabbed Jordan's arm and started to pull her away from the pool. "I just remembered – we forgot something in the car."

"Huh?" Jordan asked, nearly falling over at the sudden jerk. "What are you talking about?"

"License plate decal," Lyn said quickly. Jordan stopped arguing instantly; mention of a license plate was their code word for the need to get the heck out of Dodge.

"Oh – sorry," she said regretfully to Tyler. "We gotta go."

"Uh, well, see you in a few minutes, then?" Tyler asked, completely thrown off by this sudden turn of events.

"Yeah," Jordan lied before turning and half running for the lockers and their clothes. "What happened, Lyn?"

"Somebody used The Power," Lyn hissed through her teeth. "That guy who was following me – I'd bet money it was him. Get your clothes on, hurry."

"Reid, get out of the water, now," Caleb ordered as he came up to Tyler's side. "Tyler, that girl you were talking to – did she seem odd to you?"

Tyler frowned. "Odd? What do you mean?"

"I mean that when Reid used just now, that brunette knew it."

"What?! So she ran off because she knows what we are?!"

"More than that," Pogue said, looking toward the girls' locker room. "She's someone who can sense The Power being used. And it scared the hell out of her."

"Reid, I said get the hell out of the water!" Caleb yelled before looking back at Pogue and Tyler. "We have to figure out who they are."

Pogue nodded. "So let's drag Reid out of the pool and go find them."


	3. Confrontation

Disclaimer: Neither Jordan nor I own The Covenant or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N:

---

**3. Confrontation**

"So you're telling me the hot brunette's a witch?!" Reid demanded.

"Don't know yet," Caleb said tensely. "But she sure as hell knew what you were doing."

"She has to be – who else can sense The Power?" Pogue reasoned.

"But she's a girl!" Reid objected. "There's never been a girl in any of our families with The Power!"

Just then Caleb and Pogue both tensed and looked toward the locker room. "They're making a run for it."

---

"This sucks," Lyn hissed as she phased them both through the locker room wall so they wouldn't have to go back through the gym. "I called in my last favor to get us here – we're on our own after this."

"Well, we have been on our own before. We can do it now. We just gotta get out of here and figure out our next move later," Jordan said as they hurried back toward the car.

A shudder ran down Lyn's spine as she felt another stirring of The Power behind them. "Dadgum it, all four of them – they're coming."

"Dammit – Lyn, let's go!"

And with that, she took off running, grabbing Lyn's hand and pulling her long with her.

"They're running!" Reid yelled to the others as they rounded the corner and saw the girls.

Without turning, Lyn yanked her hand away from Jordan and clapped them together hard just above her head, sending a shockwave of Power cascading out in all directions. Caleb shot out a burst of his own Power to act as a shield for himself and his friends but that didn't stop the wave from crashing into everything else and sending broken glass and bricks falling down toward them.

"Well, she's Ascended," Tyler said unnecessarily.

"No, really?!" Reid yelled back at him and sent a burst of Power back at the girls, trying to knock them off their feet long enough to catch up to them.

Jordan turned around and used her own Power to shield and deflect Reid's then kept running toward the car.

"Well, this is just screwing with everything we know about The Power!" Tyler complained. "How can they both have it if they're sisters?!"

"Maybe they're not sisters – who cares?" Caleb demanded, attacking their feet with another shot of Power.

This time Jordan's Power wasn't enough as a shield – his went right through and sent her flying about five feet into a tree. Lyn snarled and whirled on her heel, throwing attacks as fast as her arms could move as she yelled over her shoulder, "You're not strong enough – go!"

Jordan groaned and pulled herself up, her head fuzzy as she felt something warm running down her face. She blinked a few times, trying to clear her vision and then ran back to Lyn's side, taking on a defensive stance. "I'm not leaving you, Lyn!"

She looked over at her sister, her eyes black as she harnessed all of her power.

"They stopped. Let's just try to talk to them before we fight, alright?" Pogue said, stopping about five feet from the two girls.

"What exactly do you think we're gonna talk to you traitors about?" Lyn growled but her eyes shifted back to green despite her offensive posture.

"Traitors? Us? We didn't all use our Power, just Reid! And he only did it to show off for you! And then we had to to protect ourselves from _your_ Power!" Pogue said.

Lyn snickered. "Right, sure. And I suppose you were chasing us to invite us to a tea party?" she asked scathingly.

"No, we wanted to find out what the hell you're doing!" Reid yelled at her.

"I mean, you obviously sensed him using The Power so we were suspicious. We didn't know there were any witches around here," Pogue said.

"Yeah, that goes double here," Lyn muttered darkly, her eyes narrowing at him. "So you're trying to say you don't know anything. You just happened to be here."

"Well, we are all descendants of the witches of Ipswich. We're warlocks, and we have The Power. But so do you two," Caleb said.

Lyn nodded slowly. "You really don't know, do you? You have no clue why we made a break for it when you used."

"Uh… enlighten us?" Pogue asked.

Jordan looked over at Lyn and then back to the four guys, her expression grave.

Lyn scoffed and shook her head in disbelief. "Rich kid Yankees, I should've known. Your grandparents probably bought their ways out of it a long time ago." Crossing her arms, she asked slowly, "Any of you ever heard of the Bell Witch?"

"Uh… Should we have?" Reid asked, looking to his friends for support.

Lyn sighed. "Robertson County, Tennessee, 1817. Douchebag named John Bell had an affair with a witch named Elizabeth Marshall. She got pregnant and wanted him to leave his wife. He refused, beat her, killed the baby, nearly killed her. Needless to say, she was a little ticked off. Terrorized him and his family for three years until she finally killed him.

"Of course, none of that's on the public record. Today, local legend says it was a poltergeist but back then, Salem was still fresh in people's minds. The governor created an investigation team to look into it. They found out about Elizabeth and she did the stupidest thing she could've done: admitted everything."

Lyn shook her head. "This was six generations ago but after that, the witch hunt went nationwide. It was more covert, though – the government didn't want people panicking and getting themselves killed. Of course, we didn't count as 'people.'

"It's almost Black Ops-grade. The highest level of the FBI, claiming to be DEA when dealing with the public – drug use really _is_ how they explain just about anything to the American people. Makes a convenient excuse for any damage we do trying to get away, too. And they do trying to catch us."

Lyn's eyes narrowed. "And by 'they,' I mean the ones they've cornered and given the option of hunting the rest of us. They offered that to our dad, too, before they killed him. So you'll have to excuse us for assuming anybody who wasn't hiding was on the other side."

"Oh. I'm sorry… But we aren't part of anything, you have our word on that," Pogue said. "I know you have no reason to trust us, but neither do we. We won't tell anyone about you if you don't tell anyone about us."

"We don't sell people out," Jordan said, finally speaking.

"Just keep your eyes open," Lyn warned. "And don't take any detours south of the Mason-Dixon Line. C'mon, JJ, we've still gotta hit the road."

"Yeah. Right…" Jordan looked at Tyler, wishing for one second that her situation was different and she could stay and see how things played out between them.

"Hey, you don't have to leave," Pogue said, taking one step forward.

Lyn shook her head. "We can't stay if you're not with them just as much as if you were. Maybe more. You don't get it – these guys are bloodhounds. They'll come looking for us and they'll find you."

"We can take care of ourselves. And apparently, so can you. You stayed hidden from them this long, and apparently so have we," Caleb said.

Jordan looked to Lyn, not wanting to leave, but not wanting to put anyone in danger at the same time. "… Lyn?"

Lyn sighed exasperatedly. "Of course you have – you're warlocks. Only one inherits The Power in a generation; it's easier to hide. You don't understand what it means to be hunted. Your families, your friends, everybody you've ever known is fair game to them. Is that what you want?"

"Like he said, we can handle our own," Reid said.

"You don't have to leave to protect us, we can protect ourselves," Pogue said.

Jordan bit her lip. "Lyn… You said yourself you called in your last favor to get us here…"

Lyn's sigh was heavier this time, more resigned. "Fine. Fine, but on your own heads be it. I'm not taking responsibility this time."


	4. Seeds of Conflict

Disclaimer: Neither Jordan nor I own The Covenant or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N:

---

**4. Seeds of Conflict**

"That's the dorm over there," Caleb said, pointing. "Have you found your dorms yet?"

"Dorm, singular; we got our own room," Lyn corrected. "Guy who owed me a favor owed me big. He pulled a lot of strings."

"Damn, this place is huge. I guess I'm gonna have to humor Isaac after all," Jordan said, half out loud, half to herself.

Lyn raised an eyebrow but before she could speak, Tyler looked over at Jordan shiftily and asked, "Isaac? Who's Isaac?"

Pogue, Caleb, and Reid all snickered at Tyler's tone of voice.

"Some guy who seemed to take a liking to me in homeroom," Jordan said. "He offered to show me around and take me to all of my classes." She sighed. "Even though I gave him no encouragement, he still kept on talking to me. I felt kinda bad, you know?"

"No, not really," Lyn said, snickering. "I only attract psychos, stalkers, and douchebags, remember?"

"I could show you around if you're afraid of getting lost," Tyler offered quickly. "I mean, if you just really didn't want to ask him…"

Jordan grinned at Lyn's comment and blushed a light pink at Tyler's suggestion. "Uh, yeah… That'd be really good. Isaac kinda… annoys me."

"Wait, are you saying I'm a psycho, stalker, or douchebag?" Reid asked Lyn, his voice suspicious.

Lyn rolled her eyes. "You hit on me within the first ten seconds of seeing me and you weren't looking at my face. Not exactly the best of first impressions."

"Oh, really?" Tyler asked, smiling faintly and trying not to be too obvious. "So I don't annoy you then?"

Jordan smirked slightly. "Not yet, anyway."

Tyler grinned. "I can deal with not yet."

Jordan blushed even more at the sight of his grin and lowered her head to hide it.

"That doesn't make me any of those things, that makes me observant!" Reid protested.

Pogue rolled his eyes. "No, that kinda makes you all of those things, man."

"Seriously, what kind of creep follows you around staring at you and expects you to go for that?" Lyn added, shaking her head. "You're lucky I didn't snap your neck."

"Oh, like I'm scared," Reid mumbled.

Caleb rolled his eyes at Reid while Pogue's eyebrows shot up at Reid's response and what he knew Lyn's would be.

The sort of devilish smirk that only crossed Lyn's face when she felt a challenge had been issued appeared quickly. "Really now. Hey, JJ, who's your money on?"

Jordan snorted. "Oh, you know my money's on you, Lyn."

Lyn's smirk just broadened. "Think we should tell him why or let him find out the hard way?"

"Let's let him find out himself, shall we?" Jordan's manner of walking turned from shy to confident and mocking in two seconds as she joked with her sister.

"Alright, tough guy," Lyn said, stopping directly in Reid's path so he had to stop too, her smirk broadening into a full-fledged evil grin. "No Power, 'cuz something tells me you're already well on your way to aging yourself into Methuselah when you Ascend. Besides, it's a little fairer that way. Not much, but a little."

"Oh, god…" Jordan sighed and stopped, leaning against a nearby wall. "This could take either a while or 30 seconds."

"Eh, why drag it out?" Lyn said, shrugging.

Caleb looked uncertain. "Are you serious? You know this guy gets in bar fights every other week, right?"

For some unknown reason, Lyn's grin just broadened. "Oh, don't worry about me. Just take a few steps back, would you? You know, unless whiny boy's scared of a girl…"

"I'm not scared of some chick," Reid said confidently, taking a few steps closer to Lyn.

Jordan smirked and pulled out her phone, opening the games application and playing Uno with some guy named Matt.

Tyler blinked at her. "Uh… Aren't you even a little worried?"

Jordan sucked in a breath at that and rolled her eyes. "Stupid boy," she muttered.

"Reid, cool it – you're not really gonna fight a girl, are you?" Pogue tried to reason.

"No, he's gonna get his butt kicked by one," Lyn corrected.

"This girl doesn't _act_ like any girl I've ever known," Reid mocked.

Lyn's eyes narrowed dangerously at that, her expression going from amused to lethal in a split second. "What exactly are you saying, prissy boy?"

"I'm saying this whole fighting thing is a joke and it's not very feminine and neither are you," Reid said, smirking.

Jordan's smirked vanished and she glared at Reid. "Asshole…"

The next second, Lyn's fist shot out in a backfist that Reid barely had time to see coming, much less evade. The force of the impact sent him stumbling back toward the wall with blood running down his face. Then Jordan's fist impacted the side of his face and he went stumbling forward again, straight into a roundhouse kick from Lyn that knocked him to the ground.

Growling, Lyn put out a hand to hold Jordan back and glared down at Reid. "You should be glad this freaking uniform makes me wear a skirt or I'd stomp your face in. Find out who you're talking to next time before you run your mouth – look up female sport fighters in the southeast sometime. I think you'd get kick out of one of the names on the top 10 list. Oh, and for the record… If I'm not very feminine and you've been following me around all day, what does that make you?"

Jordan stood heavily above Reid. "Let me hit him again, Lyn…" She stood there tensed, ready to strike with an okay, jaw and hands clenched.

"Jesus!" Caleb reached down and pulled Reid up from the ground. "You actually did it?!" he half accused but he was trying to hide the smirk on his face as he righted his friend.

"You bitches! You broke my nose!" Reid poked gingerly at his nose and wiped away a bit of blood.

Jordan turned around and punched him again. "You asshole! I don't like that word!" yelled as she threw another punch.

"Jordan Jane Elumo!" Lyn hissed as she grabbed her sister and pulled her back. "Okay, that was uncalled for. If putting him on the ground didn't teach him manners, nothing will."

Jordan took deep breaths, calming herself and flushing at the reprimand from Lyn. "Sorry I punched you, Reid…" She bit the inside of her cheek so hard she tasted blood as she struggled not to argue with Lyn about the fact that he had it coming and he deserved it.

"Holy shit!"

Caleb and Pogue struggled to keep Reid upright as he slumped.

"Uh, yeah," Lyn said with a sheepish sort of grin. "My roundhouse kicks kind of tend to knock the air out of people even when they're wearing chest protectors so… yeah, he's gonna think he's gonna suffocate for a minute until the shock to the solar plexus wears off. He won't though," she added quickly.

Tyler, who had been silent this whole time, abruptly doubled over with laughter. "Reid, man… That was awesome!"

Jordan looked over in surprise, grinning. "Awesome? Seriously?" She laughed incredulously.

"Dude, it's not _that_ funny," Caleb muttered.

"Yeah, it is," Tyler said, managing to restrain his laughter to snickers. "It's Reid!"

"Yeeaahh… Loathe though I am to be on the little perv's side or anything, he may need stitches on that cut on his eyebrow," Lyn pointed out.

Jordan looked from Tyler to Reid's face. "Ooh… Did I do that?" She looked at him apologetically. "Uh… I can stitch it. I'm pretty good at it."

"Do we want to know why?" Caleb asked exasperatedly.

"Uh… no," Jordan replied matter-of-factly.

"I told you it's not a picnic being hunted," Lyn said, her tone reverting to serious again. "The fact that we used to be part of a family of five should speak for itself."

"Come on," Jordan said, trying to ignore Lyn's comment. "I have my kit back at the dorm. I can patch him up there."


	5. Options

Disclaimer: Neither Jordan nor I own The Covenant or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N:

---

**5. Options**

Jordan guided them back to her and Lyn's room and opened the door, moving to let them in. "Just put him on one of the beds."

"You can put him on your bed, thanks," Lyn said, pointing. "He bleeds on my fuzzy sheets and I'll kill him myself."

Pogue stared at that. "Fuzzy sheets?"

"Yes," Lyn said unashamedly. "They are fuzzy and soft and purple and awesome and if you think that's funny, I'll kill you too."

"Whatever, I have to wash my sheets anyway," Jordan mumbled as they put him down on her bed and she grabbed her first aid kit. She pulled out the needle and thread, antiseptic gel, alcohol swabs, and a bandage and got to work patching him up.

"Don't kill him for being a jerk while pretending to try to help," Caleb warned half jokingly but half seriously.

"Yeah, it just comes natural to him," Pogue said with a smirk.

"Why is everybody picking on me?" Reid complained.

"Because you make it so easy," Tyler said, grinning.

Jordan grinned. "Yeah, really," she said as she finished up the stitches and cleaned the cut once more, daubing gel onto it and putting the bandage on.

"Okay, you're good." She stood up and stretched, her back sore from bending down.

"Looks like you'll live, man," Caleb said, smirking.

"To get your ass kicked another day," Pogue added, laughing.

Tyler looked around for Lyn, planning to raise her arm like a champion fighter or something just to annoy Reid, then blinked when he saw her sitting on her bed on the other side of the room, staring at the wall and ignoring them all. Frowning, he muttered in a low voice so she wouldn't hear it, "Okay, seriously, what's up with her? I mean, shit, it's kind of hard to believe she's even your sister."

"She gets like that sometimes. Just being the oldest and everything, you know?" she said, unconsciously moving closer to him as she spoke.

Tyler smiled softly. "Not really. But Caleb's the oldest and he's a buzzkill sometimes too so I guess I get it a little."

"Well, she's still my sister. And even though we are complete opposites in some ways, I love her. She's been the only constant in my life." Jordan smiled sadly and looked over at Lyn.

"I'm sorry," Tyler said and he genuinely sounded like he meant it. "But maybe you'll get to stay here for a while, right? Make friends and everything…"

She looked up at him and smiled. "Yeah. Hopefully we won't regret staying." A flicker of pain crossed her face. "I don't want anyone else to get hurt."

"Hey, there are four of us here," Tyler pointed out, trying to reassure her. "Plus Pogue's dad and now you two."

"And when we were growing up, there were three Ascended plus us and our older brother and cousin," Lyn added suddenly, her eyes hard as they finally shifted over to the group assembled by Jordan's bed. Apparently she hadn't been ignoring them as much as she had seemed to be. "Three of us are still alive, one of which is only because he turned traitor." She shook her head. "You don't grasp the reality of this yet."

Jordan flinched like someone had slapped her. "Lyn, please." Her eyes welled with tears.

"I know," Lyn said, her voice softening slightly but her eyes still cold as shale as they fixed on the others. "But they need to get it through their skulls. People don't make it out of this alive and unchanged. If they find you, people you love will die."

Two tears slowly fell down Jordan's face as she clenched her jaw and went to sit down on Lyn's bed where Lyn put her arm around her sister comfortingly. Caleb watched the two girls for a moment before saying quietly, "I'm sorry about what happened before, but nobody is dying here and nobody is selling anyone out."

Lyn's eyes were full of fire again as she looked up at him. "And why is that? Because you all grew up together? Because you've survived together? Because you're like family?" She said the last word almost mockingly before snarling, "Do you want to know _who_ is hunting us? Someone I dated for three and a half years and our cousin who grew up with us like a brother. Don't you freaking tell me that no one here is capable of betrayal."

Pogue spoke up then. "I'm sorry. But we aren't like them."

Lyn nodded. "Oh, I don't doubt that – not yet, anyway. But everyone has one of two reactions when it actually comes down to being hunted. Just depends whether they're more afraid of dying or being caged. Because eventually those will be the only options."


	6. Exit, Stage Left

Disclaimer: Neither Jordan nor I own The Covenant or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N:

---

**6. Exit, Stage Left**

"Why exactly do y'all hang out in a bar if you're all underage?" Lyn asked with a raised eyebrow. "They not big on carding in Yankeeland?"

She and Jordan were currently in the back seat of Tyler's Hummer, riding with him and Reid to Nicky's. Lyn was at least glad of the opportunity to shed the skirt and tie and put on some embroidered jeans and knee-high black boots but otherwise she wasn't very psyched about this plan.

Jordan, who was wearing a pair of tight black jeans and a blue halter top, grinned. "Apparently not. Go wild, big sis!"

"Unfortunately, they do. We never order any booze, just soda. If the mood strikes us, we just bring a six pack," Pogue said with a shrug.

Lyn made a face. "Eugh. How do you drink beer? Don't they have Jack Daniel's in New England?"

Caleb grinned. "It's an acquired taste."

"One would think rich boy Yankees could just acquire some better alcohol," Lyn said, shaking her head. "But I guess the definition of good alcohol is different up here."

The guys laughed and Jordan watched Tyler's grin for a few seconds before looking away, blushing. "You'd think, huh?" She grinned, trying to ignore the butterflies in her stomach.

Lyn raised an eyebrow as Tyler parked and she eyed what looked like a converted warehouse. "Well… At least we know we have cover in case of a zombie attack…"

"Well, at least we know we're protected against _zombies_," Jordan said sarcastically as she jumped down from the car.

"Yes, thank god," Caleb said, smirking.

Lyn laughed and nudged Jordan's shoulder. "Don't you remember? Back in Lynchburg, you were probably six or seven? Scott's friend Taylor briefed us on the zombie apocalypse and gave us rankings in his survivalist army."

"Ah, right. I believe I was given a higher ranking because he had a thing for me?" Jordan smirked and closed the door behind Lyn. The guys climbed out of the car after the girls and Tyler locked the doors behind them.

Lyn snorted. "You wish! I was a general and Scott was an admiral. You, my dear, were a measly second lieutenant. Besides, he was thirteen – why the heck would he have had a thing for a seven-year-old?"

"Oh, he just didn't want to admit it to himself," Jordan mumbled, not wanting to admit that, in fact, it was her who had had the crush.

"Zombie apocalypse, huh?" Pogue spoke up, smirking. "Sounds like someone was a little off his rocker."

Lyn chuckled but her smile turned a little sadder. "Scott encouraged it. Our brother, I mean. They were watching a zombie movie one night not long after he turned thirteen – he wasn't very in control of The Power yet, still did things by accident when he got jumpy, you know? So he accidentally blew up the TV and convinced Taylor it was part of a zombie conspiracy. It was just a joke at first but then Taylor ran with it and, well, it was just too freaking funny to give a more plausible excuse like bad wiring."

Jordan sighed at the mention of the painful subject and changed it quickly. "So let's go inside, yeah?"

The guys nodded and walked toward the doors of the bar. Lyn grabbed Jordan's hand, squeezed it, and smiled reassuringly. "He'd want us to laugh, you know."

"Yeah." Jordan smiled and pulled Lyn into the bar, looking around for the guys. "Hey, there's Pogue with some girl." Her brow creased. "Wait, he looks upset. Wonder what's wrong?"

Then a second later, the raised voices pretty much cleared that up.

"What the hell, Kate?!" Pogue demanded, switching his gaze back and forth between the girl and some blond guy a few feet away. "First Chase, now him?! Do you go out with every guy at school behind my back?!"

"Pogue, you're being ridiculous!" Kate shot back. "You're always getting upset over nothing! He's just a friend!"

"Then what the hell were you doing in the corner with your heads together?! You sit that close with all of your friends?! You were practically in his lap!"

"I'm sick of you being so controlling, Pogue! If you're gonna keep restricting me, I don't know how this is gonna work!"

Pogue's jaw was so tight he was practically speaking through his teeth as he growled, "You know what? I don't think it is. Not if I'm gonna come walking in here every other night and find you with a different guy."

"Fine! At least I don't have to deal with you and your jealousy anymore!"

And with that, she grabbed the blond's hand and walked away.

Pogue just stood there for a second, hands clenched so hard his entire body was shaking, then abruptly turned and punched a hole through the wall.

"Hey!" a big bald guy yelled from behind the bar. "Go take out your roid rage somewhere else!"

For a second, Pogue looked like he might lash out, but then he muttered, "Yeah, whatever," and headed for the door.

"Pogue, man," Caleb began, trying to be sympathetic, but Pogue pushed past him and left the bar.

Jordan watched him go and grabbed Lyn's hand. "Come on," she said, heading toward the door.


	7. Backalley Theology

Disclaimer: Neither Jordan nor I own The Covenant or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N:

---

**7. Backalley Theology**

Jordan and Lyn came outside to see Pogue kicking around trash cans in the alley behind the bar.

"… It's not your fault, you know," Lyn said quietly.

When Pogue didn't listen, Jordan walked up to him and put her hand on his shoulder. Pogue turned around and sent out a burst of Power that sent her lying back about five feet into the wall, knocking the air out of her.

The next second, Lyn's fist collided with his jaw. It wasn't meant to wound like when she had hit Reid, just hard enough to focus his anger on her instead. "Knock it off," she said in the same low tone. "She's not the one you're mad at. Believe me, I know how you feel right now but if you attack my sister again, I'll do twice the damage to you."

Pogue's eyes focused on her then moved to Jordan. Then he moved forward to help her to her feet. "I'm sorry. You didn't do anything except try to help and you didn't deserve that."

"No biggie," Jordan said, smiling softly. "Listen, I'm sorry about that girl. You don't deserve _that_."

Lyn's eyes gauged the emotions in Pogue's for a moment before she jerked her head toward the bar and said quietly, "JJ, why don't you head back in and make sure they know nobody's killing anybody or anything out here. I got this one."

"Yeah, alright," Jordan said and with a last look at Pogue, she walked back inside. Pogue sighed and scratched the back of his neck.

Lyn crossed her arms and sighed too. "You know, ordinarily I'd probably break your face for that little stunt."

Pogue looked up. "Ordinarily?"

"You get a little lee-way this time," Lyn said with the very faintest of smiles. "Only this time though so don't go trying it again. I wasn't just trying to calm you down when I said I know how you feel."

"Thanks," Pogue said, sighing and running a hand through his hair.

Lyn watched him for a second before saying in a very low, almost strained voice, "She'll apologize, you know. Until she wears her voice out if you let her. You're probably the type who would accept it but… if I were you, I wouldn't."

"Why?" Pogue asked, looking up.

Lyn's smile was bitter this time. "Because I've been there and that's how it starts. Next thing you know, you'll get off work, grab her favorite dinner as a surprise, and walk in and find her and the neighbor with their pants down."

"I guess you're right," he mumbled, jaw clenched, staring at the ground.

"… Hey…" Lyn put a hand on his shoulder. "I know what you're thinking and… well, I don't really know you or her, but you didn't do anything wrong. Nobody can do anything wrong enough to deserve that."

Pogue looked down at her hand on his shoulder then back up at her. "You're right. You don't know her. She can be amazing, funny, sweet. And I was gullible. But not again."

Lyn shook her head. "That's not being gullible – that's caring. There's nothing wrong with that. Sometimes people just take advantage of it."

"Yeah, I guess so, huh?"

"Yeah. And trust me, it could be worse." She smiled, trying to make a joke out of it but her eyes were dead serious. "At least she isn't trying to kill you yet."

"So you said you know how I felt?" Pogue asked, changing the subject.

Lyn was silent for a moment then crossed her arms and nodded. "Yeah. Warlock I met in Athens when I was fourteen." She shook her head. "Let the douchebag come with us when we had to run. Repaid me by sleeping with the slut down the street."

"Oh, I'm sorry," Pogue said simply, though truly meaning every word.

"It was almost a year ago," Lyn said, trying to shrug it off. "Scott beat the crap out of him. Would've killed him but I wouldn't let him." She shook her head and her jaw clenched. "I should've let him."

"You probably should have," he agreed bluntly.

"I know I should have," Lyn growled darkly. "After we let him go, the Mill caught him. He blames me so he hunts us now."

"You couldn't have known. It's not your fault."

Lyn smiled darkly. "That doesn't help bring anybody back though, does it?"

"No, I guess it doesn't. But for what it's worth, you don't deserve any of what happened to you," Pogue said.

Lyn's smile was wry but her eyes dark as she met his gaze and asked, "And how would you know?"

"Nobody deserves to have their trust betrayed."

After a second, Lyn laughed. It wasn't an amused laugh really, more like the one someone used when realizing something ironic. "I just said that to you, didn't I?" She shook her head. "Guess that makes me a liar too. No, I definitely earned it later. I let him live and he killed my brother. If that's not betrayal, I don't know what is."

"You aren't a liar, Lyn. I just meant that…" He paused. "I guess I mean that you're right. Nobody, you or me or anyone, deserves to be treated that way."

Lyn was silent for a moment then asked slowly, "Do you believe in God, Pogue? Any kind of deity?"

Pogue paused for a moment. "I believe in what I can see."

Lyn nodded. "Yeah, I never really bought it either." She smiled wryly. "Something about witches being eternally damned turned me off to the whole deal a little. But you know, sometimes I wonder. Not because it makes sense or I want to believe there's some master plan or cosmic order or whatever… But honestly… Sometimes it kinda feels like I'm damned."

"I definitely don't believe in people being damned. If there is a god, wouldn't he, like the Bible says, love us all, no matter what?"

"Yeah, because the world has so much love and goodness and light just surrounding us all the time." Lyn snickered. "Way I figure it, if there is a God, I'm going to hell in a handbasket. If there isn't… Well, I'm probably already there."


	8. Total Accident

Disclaimer: Neither Jordan nor I own The Covenant or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N:

---

**8. Total Accident**

Tyler got up quickly when Jordan walked back in and hurried to meet her. "What's going on out there? Caleb said someone was using."

"Yeah, it was Pogue. He just sort of… used. But it's no big deal." Jordan reached up to run her hand through her hair and felt something wet below her hairline.

Tyler's eyes went wide instantly. "Is that blood?! Did Pogue do that?!"

"It was an accident, he didn't mean to," Jordan said quickly, reaching out and putting a hand on his arm.

"He didn't mean to use on you?! I'll kill him!"

"Hey, Tyler, please. He's going through a rough time and I startled him. He acted reflexively and I'm not even hurt. It's just a scratch."

"That's hurt," Tyler grumbled but reigned in his reaction a little. "At least let's get some ice from the bar and take a look at it, okay?"

Jordan nodded, relieved. "Yeah, okay."

"Lyn'll probably kill him first anyway," Tyler said wryly as he got ice and a handful of napkins from the bar before leading Jordan to a nearby table. "Let's hope no more stitches are in order today, huh? I doubt you can sew your own face."

Jordan smiled wryly. "Done it before, actually."

Tyler winced and shook his head. "I definitely don't want to know about that." Daubing at the cut as gently as possible, he added, "You're sure you're okay? No other wounds?"

"I mean, I hit my head, but other than that… no," Jordan replied.

Tyler's eyes tightened slightly again. "On what?" he asked, trying to keep his tone casual.

"Uh… the wall."

"I guess it could've been worse," Tyler said with a sigh. "Caleb threw Reid into a ten-foot pallet of beer once. He was picking glass out of his hair for weeks."

Jordan laughed. "I'm sure he deserved it. Caleb doesn't seem the type to do that for no reason." She winced as he touched a particularly sensitive spot on her head.

"He did kind of ask for it," Tyler admitted. "It's still not right to use on each other, though." He paused for a second then declared, "Well, you're not gonna need stitches. I definitely think a Band-Aid is in order, though."

"I'll have to put one on when I get back to the dorm." Jordan paused and looked up at him. "Thank you."

Tyler smiled and carefully patted the wound with a clean napkin before brushing her hair back from it gently. "No problem."

Jordan blushed and smiled and was about to say something when Caleb walked up to them. "So Pogue used on you, huh? And he's still breathing on his own? I looked outside and he and Lyn were actually talking, not fighting… Meaning she didn't rip him a new one," Caleb said, unable to believe what he was saying.

Jordan rolled her eyes, miffed at her and Tyler being interrupted. "You know, Lyn can be rational and even _sweet_ at times. In fact, the times when Lyn isn't being those things are the odd times."

"She's odd a lot around us, then," Caleb said a little doubtfully.

"She probably just doesn't trust us yet," Tyler said, shrugging and trying not to look irritated. "Did you tell Reid and Sarah yet that everything's cool?" he asked pointedly.

"Oh, uh, right. I'll go do that," he said, realizing the situation he had just walked into. Jordan sighed as he walked away, chancing a glance at Tyler, who smiled at her.

"He's just worried and doesn't want to admit it," he said, shrugging. Then he frowned slightly. "Although why he's more worried about Pogue when it's his fault, I don't really know."

"He knows that he's with Lyn, who's very protective of me. Who would kill to protect me. And he means more to Caleb than I do. They're really close. I can see that," Jordan said, her voice soft.

Tyler's frown deepened. "And you're the one who's hurt. _Because_ of Pogue. It'd serve him right if she messed him up a little."

"It's really not a big deal, Tyler," Jordan said, smiling wryly.

"Well, it is to me," Tyler muttered. He paused for a second and then added, "You know, they might have Band-Aids in the bathroom – want me to go check?"

Jordan nodded. "Sure – I'll stay here."

Tyler smiled, winked, and said, "Be right back." He returned a minute later holding up a bandage triumphantly like some kind of conquering hero. "Got it!"

"Indeed you do," Jordan said, grinning and staring at him for a second before looking away, blushing a light pink and cursing herself for blushing whenever she was around him.

Tyler chuckled. "Okay, just hold still for a second and I'll fix that."

Jordan nodded and turned her face upward slightly so he would have better access. Tyler muttered, "Dang, it's bleeding again, hold on," and started daubing at it with the napkin again.

Jordan looked up and into his eyes, sighing. Suddenly, he looked down at her and smiled. "You know, you're beautiful. I thought it from the moment I first saw you by the pool."

Jordan was taken aback. "Really?"

"Of course. If I didn't think you'd say no, I'd ask you to be my girlfriend."

Jordan smiled and leaned forward, kissing him lightly on the lips. "Of course I'll be your girlfriend," she said wistfully.

Tyler paused with his fingers smoothing the bandage on her forehead and blinked twice very quickly. "Uh, what?"

Jordan was snapped out of her daydream and blushed a deep red. "Oh, uh, I was just thinking about this book I read, and that line just struck me. See, this girl was talking to this guy who she liked, and he liked her too. But he was naming all the reasons they shouldn't be together and she just said, 'Of course I'll be your girlfriend,' and I thought that was pretty cool, you know?"

Tyler raised an eyebrow skeptically. "Uh… I guess…" He paused. "Maybe you hit your head harder than you thought…"

"Yeah, I guess I did. I just spaced out," Jordan said, rolling with it.

"Maybe we should get the school nurse to look at it," Tyler went on, sounding a little worried.

"Oh, I think I'll be fine. It's already starting to feel better," she said, smiling reassuringly.

"Are you sure?" Tyler asked slowly. "You could have a concussion…"

"Yeah, I should be fine," Jordan said, touching his arm reassuringly.

"Alright, if you're sure," Tyler said but he still seemed uncertain. Not only about whether she was okay but also about her lame, rambling excuse for what she had said. He wondered if she had actually been talking about him… but then again, he could just be thinking egotistically…


	9. The Power of ACDC

Disclaimer: Neither Jordan nor I own The Covenant or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N:

---

**9. The Power of AC/DC**

True to Lyn's prediction, Kate did later try to apologize and get back into Pogue's good graces. However, true to what he had said that night, Pogue didn't accept her apology. Now, as the Sons of Ipswich plus Sarah, Lyn, and Jordan sat around a table at Nicky's, Kate sat in a corner with the blond guy Pogue had found her with before. However, she still kept shooting looks over at their table.

"Okay, seriously, you _all_ thought that world civ test was hard?" Lyn was asking, looking slightly astounded. "Dang. Good thing you're all still in high school. You would've died with my college history teacher."

"Okay, not everyone is a sixteen-year-old college student," Jordan said, taking a sip of her Coke.

"Yeah, really. And that test _was_ hard," Caleb said, eating a fry off Jordan's plate, to which she glared and slapped his arm, hissing, "Get your own!"

Lyn snickered. "Never try to take food from the JJ. It is a wild beast which will rip off your arm."

Jordan rolled her eyes as the guys laughed. "Gee, thanks, sis. I'm feeling the love."

"Now, is it my fault if you act like a ravenous animal when it comes to food?" Lyn asked, poking her sister in the ribs. "Need I remind you of the time you stabbed me with a fork when you were five?"

Everyone but Lyn looked at Jordan and she rolled her eyes. "Let's remind ourselves… I was _five_. It doesn't count!"

"Oh, so things you did when you were five don't count?" Lyn asked quickly. "Awesome! Then you now have no right to goad me about burning your doll anymore!"

Jordan glared at Lyn for a good two seconds before saying, "I'm going to find a song to dance to," and getting up, head held high, and walking toward the jukebox to the sounds of laughter behind her.

Lyn snickered. "This is why you don't argue with your big sister, JJ." She paused for a second before getting up and following Jordan, adding, "And if you play city slicker crap, Imma keel you."

"Not like I'll have a choice with you following me."

"Dang straight. I'll break your fingers if you try."

Back at the table, Reid snickered. "Is that what they call sisterly love?"

"Apparently," Caleb said, smirking.

"Makes me glad I didn't have a sister," Tyler added with a laugh.

"Fine then," Jordan said, stopping in front of the jukebox. "You pick."

Lyn ran her finger down the song listings and made a face. "Jeez, Yankee music galore… Ah! Jackpot!" Grinning, she pointed to B7 and looked at Jordan. "Sound good?"

"Hell yes!" Jordan agreed with a matching grin.

"Then let's teach some city slickers how to dance," Lyn said, dropping the quarter and slapping her sister a high five. AC/DC's You Shook Me All Night Long started to play. "Three cheers for good music!"

Jordan grinned as the music began to play and started dancing, moving her whole body to the music, her hips shaking.

Tyler's eyebrows shot up. Suddenly he started wondering if it would be too forward of him to go over and dance with her. Well, that and how much the guys would laugh at him for it.

Reid looked both appalled and confused as Lyn started to dance, too. "The hell? That _is_ the ice queen, right?"

Pogue grinned, watching her dance. "Apparently not."

Caleb looked over at Tyler and smirked. "Go dance with her."

"Huh?" Tyler quickly averted his gaze back to the table. "Who said that's what I was thinking?"

Sarah laughed. "Nobody had to say it. C'mon, Caleb – if he's gonna chicken out, there should be at least one couple on their feet."

Caleb grinned and got up, grabbing her hand and taking her onto the dance floor.

"Dude, go dance with her!" Pogue said. "We've all noticed there's something there between you two."

"Okay, okay!" Tyler said with the tone of someone who was being badgered but he didn't look like he minded it very much as he got up and went to ask Jordan to dance.

"You too, Pogue… You and Lyn? Go ask her to dance, man!" Reid said, clapping him on the shoulder.

Pogue blinked. "What? What do you mean? She's having fun."

"Yeah, she is. I bet she'd have even more fun dancing with you." Reid wiggled his eyebrows.

"Man, you're sick!" Pogue shot back, shoving him in the shoulder, but he got up anyway. It wasn't like it could really hurt anything if he asked her to dance. Well, unless she decided to literally physically hurt him. She tended to do that to Reid a lot whenever he hit on her. Actually, it was possible Reid actually just wanted to see if she would do the same thing to Pogue.

Music and dancing seemed to put Lyn in a good mood though. She smiled and said sure when he asked her to dance. It was impossible to miss the light in her eyes or the way her hips moved; this was her element, something she loved, and he had to admit she looked good doing it.

Reid stared, mentally cursing and possibly on the verge of speaking them, too. What the hell?! He had been trying to get Lyn to talk to him, just talk to him without sounding hostile, since she had come here, and every time she shot him down. But she would just up and dance with Pogue?! What had _he_ done to impress her so much?

Kate's face held almost the same mixture of disbelief and shock. It was impossible; Pogue couldn't be dancing with another girl, especially not that know-it-all with the stupid accent! Kate had never even seen the girl wear makeup except for cheap lip gloss – he was way out of her league!

Tyler was disappointed when the song ended. Maybe Lyn or Jordan would put another quarter in the jukebox but he couldn't count on that. So, encouraged by the fact that she had at least been happy enough to dance with him, he took her hand and kissed it. "So did you have fun?"

"Yeah, I did," Jordan said, blushing and noting the fact that Tyler hadn't let go of her hand.

Tyler's smile only broadened. She was cute when she blushed, he noticed. Well, cuter. Hoping he wasn't about to stab himself in the foot, he asked, "Enough fun that you might want to go to a movie with me on Friday?"

Jordan lost her breath for a moment before she said, "Yeah. That'd be fun." She smiled slightly and bit her lip.

The slightly uncertain smile on Tyler's face morphed into a grin now. "Really?"

"Yeah, absolutely!"

And of course, Reid picked that moment to interrupt by crowing, "Tyler's got a girlfriend!"

Jordan leaned over and whacked Reid on the head, hissing, "Shut up or I'll kick your ass!"

Lyn snickered. "Didn't I already warn you about the wrath of the JJ?"

"Yeah, Reid, don't you ever learn?" Caleb said, grinning from ear to ear.

Pogue walked up and clapped Tyler on the shoulder. "Way to go, man."

Tyler smirked and shot him a sideways look, muttering in a low voice so no one else would hear, "So what about you and Lyn, man?"

"She's just a cool girl. There's nothing going n."

Tyler rolled his eyes. "Yeah, sure. Whatever you've gotta tell yourself, man. But that's not what it looked like when you were dancing."

Pogue didn't say anything, just threw a half sincere glare his way.


	10. Date, Interrupted

Disclaimer: Neither Jordan nor I own The Covenant or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N:

---

**10. Date, Interrupted**

Lyn was hanging upside down off the edge of her bed and reading _Gone_ by Michael Grant for the third time when she happened to see Jordan out of the corner of her eye. She blinked and moved the book out of her line of vision. "What's upsetting you?"

"Oh, what's upsetting me? What's upsetting me is that I have a date with Tyler in an hour and I can't figure out what to wear!"

Lyn rolled her eyes at the floor. "Dude, you're talking to me. I don't do style. You always look good in whatever you wear and anyway, he's a guy. Somehow I doubt he's gonna be that concerned with what you're wearing."

"But what if I show up in something and… Oh god, what if I say something stupid or spill soda on myself or what if he tries to kiss me and I do something wrong?! I haven't gone on a date since…" She cut off there with a pained expression.

Lyn did a flip off of the bed and stood up, walking to Jordan's side and hugging her. "Hey… It's been a year since then. You know Logan would want you to be happy. If you're ready to date again and you really like him, you know it will be okay."

"Yeah, you're right," Jordan said, smiling softly. Then she took a deep breath, walked over to her dresser, and grabbed a pair of ripped jeans. She paused to look through her shirt drawer before pulling out a black tunic top and pulling on both articles of clothing as well as her trademark combat boots. "Okay. How do I look?"

"I'm a fashion don't, remember?" Lyn asked, grinning. "I think you look nice, but I own three pairs of shoes and two skirts. I'm not exactly the girliest girl ever."

"Thanks," Jordan said, going into the bathroom and doing her hair and makeup.

An hour later, there was a knock on the door. Lyn answered it to see Tyler. "Oh, hey. JJ's still getting ready; she'll be back in a second."

And indeed she was. And upon seeing who was waiting, she nearly had a heart attack. "Oh, I'm sorry to keep you waiting!"

Tyler smiled reassuringly. "No big deal, I've only been here for a second."

"Oh, good." She smiled and grabbed her bag. "Ready to go?"

Tyler nodded, his smile just broadening. "Did you think about what you might want to see?"

As they walked to his car, she said, "Anything scary or funny. I like both."

"Scary?" Tyler's eyebrows raised. "Really?"

"Yeah, I love horror movies." Jordan smiled sheepishly.

"Huh. Well, there's a romantic comedy and a werewolf movie playing… Which would you like better?"

"Werewolf movie, definitely." She grinned.

Tyler laughed. "Fur and blood it is."

---

They pulled up to the theater and Jordan jumped down from the Hummer with Tyler's help. They got their tickets and junk food and went into the theater to find seats.

"Where do you like to sit?" Tyler asked. "Front, back, somewhere in between?"

"How about the middle?"

"Sure. Anywhere you'd like."

So they sat in the middle of the theater and settled themselves in as the previews rolled. Finally, the theater got dark and the movie began to play. Jordan held the popcorn between the two of them and ate absentmindedly as she watched the movie.

Tyler watched Jordan more than he watched the movie. Not that he didn't like movies with blood and explosions but it was a lot more amusing to watch Jordan's reactions. Finally he had to ask. He put his mouth close to her ear and whispered, "Okay… I don't get it… Why do you keep grinning like it's funny?"

Jordan's heart leapt at his closeness but grinned and looked over, coming face to face. "It is. It's so obviously fake and I don't scare easily," she whispered back.

Tyler chuckled softly. "I guess. I can't say I've ever actually seen a wolf bite someone's arm off to compare it to."

Jordan grinned and returned half of her attention to the movie. However, she was still very aware of Tyler's closeness. He didn't move away again now that he was close; in fact, after a minute, he carefully slipped his arm around her shoulders, watching closely for her reaction. Jordan smiled but didn't look over, playing it casually when inside her stomach was doing flip flops.

Smiling too, Tyler leaned closer to whisper in her ear again. "So want to grab something to eat after the movie?"

"Yeah, definitely." She looked over and smiled.

Tyler's smile broadened again but he didn't say anything more so she could watch the movie if she wanted to. Anyway, now they would have a chance to talk later when they ate.

An hour and a half later, Jordan, who was laughing, and Tyler, who was smiling and enjoying the sound of her laughter, came out of the theater. "It was him all along!" she laughed. "He was the werewolf! How predictable!"

"I never said it was a _good_ werewolf movie," Tyler said with a chuckle.

"Indeed you didn't," Jordan said with a grin. "So ready to go eat?"

"What kind of food do you like?"

"Uh, Italian or just plain burgers."

Tyler grinned. "How about an Italian place with awesome burgers? Rafael's is right around the corner – best of both worlds."

"Sounds awesome!" Jordan smiled as they got into his car and started off for the restaurant.

"Now the hard part is gonna be deciding which you want," Tyler said with a chuckle.

And it was. When they got there and got drinks and menus, Jordan was torn between the lasagna and bacon cheeseburger. She sighed and thought to herself, _Which has the potential for being messier?_ She decided the burger would be and ordered the lasagna instead.

Tyler ordered rigatoni then grinned at her. "I told you it would be a hard decision but you really can't go wrong. Everything here is good."

"Good." She smiled and leaned her chin on her hands. "Y'know, I'm having a lot of fun."

Tyler grinned. "Even though it was a bad werewolf movie?"

"Even though it was a bad werewolf movie," Jordan said sincerely, though grinning, taking a sip of her water.

"You looked like you had fun laughing at it, anyway," Tyler added, secretly thinking it was kind of cute.

"I really did. I can't believe people were scared!"

"I never really got the point of being scared of things that aren't real," Tyler said, shrugging. "I mean, there are plenty of things in real life to be afraid of."

Jordan's smile faltered for a brief moment but then it was back. "Yeah, you got that right."

Tyler frowned. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean it that way."

"No, I know. Just stuff that's way too big for a date." Jordan smiled wryly.

Tyler nodded. "Alright. I'm not gonna say I understand because I probably don't but if you ever want to talk about it, I'll listen."

Jordan genuinely smiled and was about to say something when her phone rang in her purse. "Sorry… Hold on a sec." She pulled out her cell phone and looked at the caller ID. Lyn.

"Hello? Lyn? … Wait, hold on, slow down! … What?! What do you mean, we're leaving?!"


	11. Unexpected Visitor

Disclaimer: Neither Jordan nor I own The Covenant or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N:

---

**11. Unexpected Visitor**

Bon Jovi blared from portable speakers and Lyn hummed along as she got out of the shower, donning black underwear and a black camisole. She was reaching for her jeans when she caught a reflection in the mirror and whirled to see who cast it.

It was a young man in his early twenties, around half a foot taller than Lyn. His black hair was shaggy and stuck out in every direction. His face was still the same as the last time she had seen it; his jaw even still set in that same stubborn line, the one he had worn when he had thrown his sisters out an open window before turning to face three other warlocks alone.

Everything was still the same except his eyes. They had been brown then just like their father's – almost as dark as his hair, and full of every emotion imaginable. He had known he was going to die to give his mother and little sisters time to get away. He would never get the chance to rescue Lisa from the Mill, who had caught her a few months before. That had been his only regret.

Now, though, his eyes were glazed over with a smoky blue, staring blankly out of his face in an expression the real Scott Elumo had never worn. Because he wasn't Scott Elumo anymore.

The Darkling's mouth opened in something like a cry; Lyn was completely frozen as it disappeared into the smoke. It, not he. It wasn't her brother. It wasn't. It was just Kyle screwing with her.

Suddenly, all the fury that had built up over the past year came pouring out of her in a torrent. She couldn't control it; she had no will to control herself now.

The mirrors smashed first – the whole row of mirrors in front of the sinks, one shattered by Lyn's fist, the rest by an explosive burst of The Power. The shower glass was next, caught in the shockwave like the mirrors. Restraint shattered just like the glass, Lyn started lashing out at everything around her – knocking the sinks off the wall, turning the wooden stalls into splinters, attacking even the wall itself until cracks ran like spiderwebs up and across it.

"What the hell?!" Pogue muttered to himself as he walked up the stairwell in the dorms. Realizing it was coming from the floor he was standing in front of, he broke into a run, heading for the source of the noise. What he found was the girls' bathroom and Lyn, with flying pieces of many objects spinning around the room like they were possessed, some almost hitting him.

"Lyn!" He ran up to stand in front of her and froze for a second when he saw her eyes. She looked mad, and not just in the angry sense; in the totally insane sense, too. She seemed completely gone.

He placed his hands on either side of her face. "Lyn, look at me! You have to calm down! Come on, look at me!"

Lyn didn't actually notice when he put his hands on her face but his voice was loud in her ears because he was almost yelling to be heard over the noise the moving objects were making. A bit of the madness seeped out of her eyes but they still looked a little lost. Everything froze in midair. "Pogue? What are you doing here?"

"I heard noises coming from down here and found you like this." He realized that his hands were still on her face and he dropped them, looking around at the floating debris of what once was the girls' bathroom.

"… Oh," Lyn said blankly, then blinked and her eyes changed back to green; everything fell around her and the sound made her jump. She stared around incredulously, like she hadn't realized what she was doing until that instant. "Unelanvhi… Okay, okay…"

Both hands caught in her still-wet hair, pulling the front of it back from her face. They were a little shaky and her face was more than a little pale. "Okay, uh, you and your friends have to hole up somewhere, now. And I have to figure out where my freaking phone went in this mess and call Jordan."

"Lyn, stop! What the hell is going on?!"

"I told you!" Lyn exploded suddenly, nearly spearing him on her fingernail as she poked him in the chest hard. "I told you, but you all had to be stupid, overconfident _warlocks_!" She hissed the word like it was an expletive, or at least the worst name she could think of to call him. "_They're coming_, that's what's going on! Kyle just sent me a Darkling, and it had to be Kyle because he's the only sadistic creep who can make a Darkling look like Scott, which means they're within a fifty-mile radius and if you don't freaking listen to me, _you're gonna die_!"

Pogue sighed and ran a hand through his hair, muttering something under his breath. "Alright – I'm calling the guys. We'll meet you at Caleb's family's old house." He pulled out his phone as he left the room, calling Caleb.

Lyn had to restore most of the room before she finally located her cell phone and then she had to fix it, too, because it had also been smashed. If she hadn't been in such a hurry, she wouldn't have cared, because a part of her knew she couldn't leave the place like this or it would be suspicious, anyway.

Jordan was number one on speed dial. The only number on speed dial now, actually. Lyn hated to break up her sister's date, but if Jordan got mad about it, at least that meant she was still alive.


	12. Backstories and Plotting

Disclaimer: Neither Jordan nor I own The Covenant or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N:

---

**12. Backstories and Plotting**

"We have to go. Now. To the old Danvers place. The guys will be waiting." Jordan got up, pulled out two twenties, and paid just so they could leave.

"_What_?" Tyler asked, too alarmed to notice as he stood up and half ran after her. "What's going on?!"

"Just what I was afraid would happen. They've found us again."

"They?" Tyler repeated. "You mean the ones who are after you? How?!"

"I don't know, but that's what they're best at. Now let's go." She got in the passenger side.

"Aw, now," a voice sneered as a hand appeared on Jordan's door, preventing it from closing. "Tracking's only what we're _second_ best at. You of all people ought to remember what we're best at, honey."

"You," Jordan growled, her eyes turning black as she threw a burst of Power at his chest.

The man actually laughed as he deflected it. "You're too young, kiddo. Not even a challenge."

"Back away now!" Tyler threatened, his eyes turning black too as he ripped an antenna off a nearby car with The Power and struck at the man with it. That too was deflected and the man's cool gray eyes flickered before turning back to Jordan.

"Is this one gonna have to die for you, too?"

Jordan's eyes welled with tears as she threw a punch his way.

The man blocked it and grabbed her arm, pinning it behind her. "Of course, that's all up to him, isn't it?" he hissed in her ear. "Where _do_ you keep finding these warlocks and lining them up for me to kill?"

Tyler's jaw set; he was afraid to move forward in case this guy hurt Jordan. There had to be something… just keep him talking for now… "What do you mean, it's up to me?"

"Leave him out of this, Steve," Jordan growled at him, trying to wrench her arm away from him.

Steve laughed. "He's a warlock, stupid girl. You think we can walk away, knowing that?" He switched his gaze back to Tyler. "You're just about as stupid. We came here for her and her sister; we didn't know there was a rogue warlock here. You could have kept quiet and walked away. Now you can either die or come with us."

Jordan struggled against Steve's hold. "Get the hell off me and don't you dare touch him, you asshole!"

"Shut – up!" Steve snarled, reinforcing his grip. Tyler took advantage of the distraction and picked up a whole newspaper rack with The Power this time, slamming it against the back of Steve's head.

Jordan broke free and yelled, "In the car – we have to go NOW!"

Tyler jumped in and turned the key, slamming the car into gear. "Can he follow us?!"

"Of course he can – we have to hope he's out long enough!" She jumped in the passenger seat and the car took off.

Jordan dialed Lyn's number and, when she answered, yelled into the phone, "He's here! He's seen Tyler!"

Where she sat in the basement with Caleb, Pogue, and Reid, Lyn swore in Cherokee. "Alright, JJ, calm down – we'll figure it out, I swear. Just get here as soon as you can."

"We're on our way – Tyler knocked him out with a magazine rack," Jordan said, looking over at Tyler.

"If you're not here in twenty minutes, I'm coming after you," Lyn said firmly. "I'll see you."

Snapping the phone closed, she looked around at the others, and her eyes hardened. "They were ambushed and Tyler used. They know he's a warlock."

"So we have to kill them," Reid said simply.

Lyn's expression was exasperated as she turned her gaze on him. "Look, kid, I get it. You're a teenage warlock. You think you're invincible. Only problem is, you're wrong. You probably won't figure that out until you or one of your buddies gets killed, but it's true. We're not talking about a couple of underage warlocks here. These guys will be Ascended and well-trained, and there will be a half dozen of them at least. If you think you can fight that, you're completely insane."

"And that's what you brought down on this Covenant?" asked a gravelly, growling voice. Lyn looked up to the stairs to see two men, one who looked to be in his forties and one who seemed about sixty, though you could never really tell with warlocks. Lyn knew one was Eli Parry and one was Marcus Simms but she had no idea which was which.

"Dad? What are you doing here?" Pogue asked, stepping toward the stairs.

"The girl called to tell us someone was coming who couldn't be allowed to find us," the forty-something-looking man answered. His eyes were the same shade of blue as Pogue's, though his hair was shorter and peppered with gray.

"And where is my son?" the other man growled. He was obviously Marcus Simms, the one who had spoken before.

Lyn sighed and closed her eyes. "He's with my sister… and he's been made as a warlock. They'll be looking for him now too."

"Lyn!" Jordan came running halfway down the stairs, followed by Tyler. "He should be awake by now."

Tyler blinked and stopped beside Jordan. "Dad?"

Lyn's eyes shot up instantly. It was impossible to miss the relief in them but she kept her voice even. "Which he? Was it Kyle?"

"No, Steve," Jordan said darkly.

"Who's Kyle? And who's Steve?" Reid asked, sounding annoyed at being confused.

Lyn looked like she half wanted to punch Reid for making her say it. "Kyle is a sadistic bastard – and I do mean that in the most literal sense. Suffice it to say that he's an ex who went to the dark side. Also literally. He killed my brother. Steve…" She looked at Jordan; that wasn't her story to tell.

"Steve killed my boyfriend. My former boyfriend, Logan." Jordan bit on the inside of her cheek and willed away aching in her chest at the thought of him, then realized that she wasn't with Logan anymore and that she cared too much about Tyler to see the same thing happen to him.

She looked up at Tyler and smiled sadly. He couldn't stand the look in her eyes; he pulled her into his arms. "I'm so sorry."

Jordan, for one moment, simply buried her face in his chest and wrapped her arms around him before pulling back and looked up at him, saying quietly, "If we live through this, we're so going on another date."

Lyn closed her eyes and set her jaw. "Alright, look, the point is –"

Mr. Simms interrupted with a growl, "The point is that you dragged my son and the rest of these boys into some kind of war!"

Lyn's eyes opened and they flashed with green fire now. "With all due respect, we didn't drag anybody into anything. We tried to leave when we found out there were undiscovered warlocks here. _Your son_ and the others here didn't _want_ us to leave. Now, if you would please sit down and let me talk, I'll try to keep everybody here from getting killed. Does that sound like a fair enough deal to you?"

"Let's just hear her out, okay?" Pogue said, looking around at everyone.

Lyn shot him an appreciative look before sighing heavily and beginning to pace. "Alright, well, my original plan was to have you all hide out and while we waited for them on campus and led them away but that's screwed over now."

Tyler bit his lip. "Sorry."

Lyn shook her head. "Don't apologize to me. You screwed yourself over, but you saved my sister. If you want to apologize to anyone, apologize to your father. I saw the pain in my mother's face every day for eighteen years that there was no way out of this for us."

She abruptly stopped dead in the middle of her pacing. "But there might be for you," she whispered slowly before catching Jordan's eye. "Did Steve have a radio on him?"

"I didn't see one," she replied.

Lyn cracked her knuckles, her eyes far away and plotting. "Steve's a smug idiot; he'll follow you, not go for help. With your energy trail that fresh, he'll find us soon… But he'll be alone… If I kill him, the tracer will activate and they'll swarm the place, but maybe…"

She ran her tongue over her lips, which suddenly felt very dry, and her voice rose out of the thoughtful tone into one that obviously expected to be obeyed. "Alright, here's the deal. No offense to you two," she jerked her head at Mr. Simms and Mr. Parry, "but you probably don't need to use your Power except as a last resort, so you need to stay down here.

"Jordan, I need you upstairs but out of sight. A couple of you guys, too. I'm not gonna lie, there's a pretty good chance this won't work, but if I touch him and he goes down, you pick him up and put him in his car and get him out of here. Somewhere that won't point back here when they activate the tracer because he disappears."

"Alright. Whoever's coming with me, come now," Jordan said, suddenly as serious as Lyn.

"I'll go," Reid said, standing up.

Lyn considered that. "It might be smarter to have Tyler and Caleb topside. Steve already knows about Tyler and Caleb's Ascended so if this doesn't work and he decides to come look at this place, you're gonna need somebody with firepower up there."

"What exactly is 'this'?" Caleb asked slowly. "What are you gonna try to do?"

Lyn looked grim. "Ever run a magnet over an electronic memory card?"

Caleb shrugged. "No?"

"Of course not," Lyn said with a sigh. "Well, it's the same deal as a magnet and a credit card. Get your card too close to your cell phone – blam, the strip gets wiped. Of course, it's a lot more complicated when it's a human mind you're talking about. Less about magnetic fields and more about the brain's internal circuitry, but Mom… had a while to figure it out," she finished with an edge of evasiveness.

Caleb nodded and Reid was about to say something when Jordan, noting Lyn's tone of voice, said, "Let's get moving. We don't know when they'll rear their ugly heads."

"And _don't use_," Lyn emphasized. "Not around him. Even if I wipe his memory, they can still follow the energy trail back here for about an hour until it fades."

Pogue frowned. "Then how are you gonna use on him without bringing him back?"

Lyn's eyes were darker than usual. "This will work in his mind, not linked to a location. That's why I have to be close enough to touch him. He has to think he's caught me."


	13. Clean Sweep

Disclaimer: Neither Jordan nor I own The Covenant or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N:

---

**13. Clean Sweep**

"Alright," Lyn said in a low voice, crouching just in front of the window, her eyes alert as a cat's. "I'm going out. He needs to catch me outside, like I'm trying to get away. If this doesn't work, I want him to think y'all are already gone."

Pogue nodded. "Be careful…"

Lyn smirked, radiating confidence even though she personally thought this had about a 50% chance of working at all and only about a 15% chance of working without repercussions for her. "Careful is for people with options. Mine are make this work or wind up in the Mill, which is on my to-do list right after 'burn in hell.' I think I'm gonna go with determination, not care."

Her eyes darted toward the road and a line of dust starting up from the gravel. "And that would be my cue. Remember, keep your mouths shut and no using unless he comes in here, no matter what it looks like. I can take care of myself."

"Gotcha," Pogue said, crouching down so that he wasn't able to be seen from the window.

Tyler watched her leave and then his eyes switched to Jordan. She looked worried. Very worried. "You okay?" he whispered softly.

"No… This can and probably will go very badly," Jordan said, sighing and looking up at him from her position leaning against the wall.

Tyler was silent for a moment, considering that. "For Lyn or for all of us?"

Jordan paused for a moment before whispering, "All of us…"

This time as Tyler hesitated, his blue eyes burned where they were fixed on her. The threat of oncoming death emboldened him. "… Well then… I really don't want to die before I get a chance to do this." He lifted her chin gently and pressed his lips to hers.

Jordan's breath caught in her throat and she froze for one second before she lifted one hand to his cheek and the other moved to rest on his shoulder.

Tyler's other arm wrapped around her waist, pulling her closer, and it was a long moment before he finally pulled back. When he did, his fingers on her chin moved to brush along her cheekbone and his voice was soothing as he whispered, "It will be okay."

Her voice was quiet and scared as she replied, "I hope you're right…" She rested her forehead against his for a moment, reveling in his closeness, then pulled back and smiled slightly.

Outside, Lyn swore loudly in Cherokee then yelled to a nonexistent fleeing party, "Faster! He's coming!"

"She's a good actor," Tyler commented, trying to keep the conversation light but knowing he was failing miserably. He held onto Jordan tightly anyway.

Steve spotted Lyn and smirked, accelerating until he got close enough to cut her off then stopped the car, threw the door open, and sent a burst of Power her way. "Lyndotia Elumo… It's been too long."

Lyn threw herself flat on the ground, feeling the energy whiz over her head and impact a tree. She couldn't use her Power or it could be traced; she had to get this over with quickly or even an idiot like Steve was bound to get suspicious that she wasn't fighting back.

A branch above her head trembled and Lyn bit her lip. This would hurt but at least it would look convincing. "Hello, Steve… and goodbye." In one sweeping motion, she knocked his leg out from beneath him and lunged to her feet, running like she had to reach the cover of the trees and didn't notice the branch falling from above.

Lyn ground her teeth and fought the self-preservation instinct that kept yelling at her to dodge as the tree limb crashed down on her shoulder. It was heavier than she expected and she didn't have to fake it knocking her to her knees. Now she just had to play up the shoulder injury like she couldn't move her arm…

"Awww… Would you look at that. A valiant effort, but not good enough." He walked forward and pushed her down the rest of the way.

A low hiss escaped between Lyn's clenched teeth, as much from anger as from pain. She hated this plan, hated it with every fiber of her being that was honed to fight, not give in. But right now her arm really _was_ pinned; she had to get him to let go. Sneering in typical defiant fashion, she growled, "Well, would you look at _that_ – you're up to big, seven-letter words now!"

Steve growled and punched her. "I'm gonna love finding your sister and her little boyfriend. I'll kill them both slowly. Maybe I'll even play around a little bit before ending her, just for you."

Anger burned like all-consuming fire in Lyn's veins. It was all she could feel, blocking out the pain in her shoulder and her mouth. She could taste the blood but it barely registered in her mind; it was burning just like everything else.

"Know what I'm gonna love, Stevie boy?" she hissed, her lip twisting into what was probably a pretty gruesome grin. "What your boss is gonna do to you when he finds out I screwed up your head."

One moment of Steve's confusion was all Lyn needed. Her knee impacted his ribs with enough force to make him double over and when his grip loosened, Lyn wrenched her arm free. Her hand almost looked gentle as it arced toward his face but it hit the side of his head hard enough to knock him off her. Her eyes were already black and he was suddenly paralyzed, his eyes turning into strange gray voids as her fingertips spread out from his forehead to his jaw. She barely noticed her arm shaking as she pushed herself into a crouch beside him, never releasing the pressure on his face.

Lyn wasn't entirely sure if it was five seconds or five minutes later that her hand dropped to the ground and she stood up. Something in her was still burning, her eyes still black despite breaking contact. She stumbled forward two steps then fell to the ground a few feet away.


	14. Head Games

Disclaimer: Neither Jordan nor I own The Covenant or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N:

---

**14. Head Games**

"Where _is_ she?!" Jordan demanded, pacing around the room.

"I'm sure she's fine," Tyler said as calmly as possible. "It's probably just taking a while."

"Lyn's better than that. Oh my god, something's happened. We have to go out there!" She walked up to the window and looked out, seeing nothing. Lyn and Steve had passed beyond the edge of the trees.

"She told us to stay here," Tyler said slowly but Pogue interrupted, "And she's also halfway to kamikaze. Jordan, just how dangerous _is_ this thing she was trying?"

Jordan turned around. "She was wiping out his memory with her Power. If she used the amount of Power I think she would have needed, she could have collapsed by now. And they could have taken her."

"Alright," Tyler said quietly. "I'll go with you. We have to check."

"Let's go," Jordan said, taking a deep breath and walking outside followed by Tyler. She scanned the area as she walked crouched down low. "Wait… what's that?" She pointed to two lumps on the ground about 100 feet away, both not moving. She started running full speed toward them, finally reaching the two and identifying Lyn in a pile on the ground.

"Lyn! Come on, wake up!" She turned Lyn onto her back and pushed her hair out of her face.

Tyler winced when he saw the blood. "Pogue, get her back inside and make sure she's okay – I've got to get this guy out of here or there won't have been any point to any of this."

Pogue picked her up gently and, followed by Jordan, walked back to the Danvers place.

Caleb swore when he saw Pogue carrying Lyn back. "What happened? Is she okay? Did it work?"

"It worked, I think, but we found Lyn and that asshole Steve both collapsed," Jordan explained while Pogue put Lyn down on a table. Jordan stood at the side of it and tapped the side of Lyn's face, trying to wake her.

"Come on, Lyn, you gotta wake up!" She put a head to Lyn's chest, feeling a heartbeat, though it was slower than it should be.

"What happened to her arm?" Caleb asked, frowning at the huge, ragged gash on Lyn's left shoulder and arm that showed through the torn sleeve of her shirt. "What do these guys _do_?"

"I didn't know they did _that_… Maybe she pissed him off," Jordan muttered, clenching her teeth and wishing she had killed Steve when she had the chance.

"She does seem to have talent at that," Reid muttered under his breath.

Lyn's eyes opened then closed tightly as she flinched away from the light. "Well," she muttered, raising a hand to rub her forehead. "That was unpleasant."

"Oh my god! Lyn, thank god… Don't do that ever again! What happened?!" Jordan said quickly.

"Okay, okay, jeez," Lyn grumbled, sitting up and wincing. "I'm not dead, quit badgering. Did somebody get rid of him?"

"Tyler had that honor," Pogue said, breathing a sigh of relief that she was okay.

Lyn nodded slowly and rolled off the table and onto her feet. "Okay. We gotta beat 'em to the draw this time. We've probably got an hour until they activate Steve's tracer so –"

"Uh, shouldn't you lie down for a while?" Caleb said, looking at her doubtfully.

"For what?" Lyn asked, blinking and looking genuinely confused. Then she followed his gaze to her arm. "Oh, that! No big, I just had to make it look convincing." She raised her arm and flexed her fingers to show that everything still worked. "It'll hurt for a few days, but it's fine. Anyway, that's hardly the biggest concern right now. Is everybody forgetting that Kyle and a bunch of other psychopaths are gonna show up anytime now?"

"Yeah, we just have to wait until Tyler gets back," Jordan said, sitting down on the table that Lyn had just got off of.

"We still need to figure out our next move," Lyn said firmly. "If we can figure out where they're looking –"

An Alabama song blared from Lyn's cell phone and she pulled it from her pocket, frowning at the caller ID. "JJ, is your phone broken again?"

"No? Why?" Jordan asked, eyebrows wrinkling.

"… I'll be right back," Lyn said quietly, heading for the door. The caller ID said Tyler but Tyler thought she was unconscious; he wouldn't call her. And if he wasn't calling her, someone else using his cell phone was.

Once she was safely out of earshot, Lyn took the call. Her voice was wary as she said slowly, "Hello…?"

"Hello, Lyndotia," a male voice said from the other end of the line.

Lyn tensed, shooting a look over her shoulder at the house to make sure no one had followed her. Her whisper was more like a lethal hiss as she demanded, "Kyle, what are you doing with this phone?"

"Aww… Come on, I'm just borrowing it for a minute," he said, a smirk in his voice.

"_Why_?" Lyn hissed even though she had a sinking feeling he already knew the answer. "What do you want, Kyle?"

"We want you and Jordan to come to 563 Juniper Avenue in an hour or we're going to waste lover-boy here," Kyle said, voice low and dangerous.

"Jordan's gone," Lyn lied reflexively, walking a little farther so she could use a more imposing tone of her own. "Another friend already got her out of town. Anyway, you don't care about her. We both know this has never been about Jordan."

"I know for a fact that she's there, Lyndotia," Kyle said. "And you're wrong; it's about both of you. We want you both. And I'd hurry. It's not just your life you're gambling with now."

The call disconnected and Lyn fought a sudden desire to slam the phone into the nearest tree. Possible scenarios raced through her mind at a hundred miles an hour. If they went, Kyle would kill Tyler anyway. If she went alone, Jordan would find out and come in without thinking, probably getting them all killed. There was the possibility of telling the other members of the Covenant but they were inexperienced and had no idea how to deal with snakes like Kyle. Still… they had a right to know.

Lyn almost felt like she was in a trance as she walked back to the Danvers place. She was vaguely aware that people were already talking but somehow it would have seemed ruder not to interrupt them.

"Kyle just called me from Tyler's cell phone."

Jordan nearly collapsed but held onto the table for support. "What?! They…" Jordan searched Lyn's eyes. "They… have him?!"

Pogue walked over to Jordan to keep her upright but Lyn kept talking like she wasn't aware anyone had spoken, her eyes unfocused like she was looking at something far away. "They're outside town. 563 Juniper Avenue. For an hour. Then he dies."

Jordan let out a half-strangled gasp and her mouth hung slightly open before she closed it and fought away tears. "Lyn, what – what are we gonna do?" she said quietly, trying to control her voice as she broke free from Pogue and paced the room slowly.

"We don't go, he dies," Lyn said in the same quiet, detached voice, her eyes still seeing a different scene than the one in front of her. "We go, we all die, just like Anne and Charlotte. They said an hour so they have time to bring in reinforcements and set up the stakes."

"I can't just let him die, Lyn. If I'm gonna die I want to die trying to save him," Jordan said, looking up at her sister.

"No, I know. We have to. They know that. Kyle knows that; he knows me." Suddenly her lost in thought expression and tone of voice disappeared. Her eyes lit up with a manic light and a very crooked smile twisted her expression. The blood on her face only made her look more insane. "And I know him."

"Uh… so?" Reid asked, looking confused.

"And I told him Jordan already skipped town with a friend trying to stall," Lyn continued with a slightly unhinged-sounding laugh. "Maybe we're all gonna die, but I got a plan, at least!"

"Uh… Should we really be following her plans right now?" Reid asked Jordan quietly. "She seems a bit unhinged at the moment…"

"She's always been unhinged," Jordan said, rolling her eyes. "It makes for some real good plans." She smirked and looked over at her sister who was laughing quietly every few seconds.

"Alright, alright, alright!" Lyn said with a maniacal grin. "Here's the deal. Kyle thought I was lying about Jordan being gone because, well, he knows I would say that. But maybe I wasn't lying."

Reid looked at Jordan. "This is a good plan? It doesn't even make sense yet."

"I mean, we _claim_ I wasn't lying," Lyn corrected. "As in I show up with just me there."

"But, Lyn… I can't let you go by yourself!" Jordan said, completely ignoring Reid's comment.

"Oh, yes, you can," Lyn informed her. "Because Kyle doesn't know how Tyler fits into this. Steve doesn't remember him being with you and if Kyle thinks he's with me, which he probably already does considering he called me about it and referred to him as 'lover-boy,' it pretty much guarantees he won't kill him because he'll want him as leverage to make me agree to go to the Mill. No, you're going to come in with _your_ boyfriend."

She narrowed her eyes at the guys speculatively and said, "Caleb, that can be you. He won't actually be expecting someone else with The Power, especially someone Ascended, so you'll have an advantage there. It'll throw him off his game plan. And you two…"

She bit her lip, sizing up Reid and Pogue. "Which one of you could fit most comfortably in the trunk of a '95 GTO? And before you answer, the other one has to manage to look like a dealer in less than an hour."

Jordan looked at Reid and Pogue, sizing them both up. "Well, Reid looks more like the punk-ass teenager type, so he won't work. Reid, you're in the trunk. Pogue, you kinda do look like a drug dealer, so channel the inner drug dealer in you," she said matter-of-factly.

Lyn snickered. "True. Reid looks more like he'd be buying than selling."

"Uh, Lyn? How exactly am I supposed to act like her boyfriend?" Caleb said, looking slightly uncomfortable.

"Yeah, and how am I supposed to fit in your trunk?" Reid added.

Pogue said nothing. After all, he knew he kinda did look like a drug dealer.

Lyn rolled her eyes. "Just drive up with her in the car and, you know, act like you don't want her to die and stuff. Nothing hokey. Act concerned about Jordan, maybe angry at me and Tyler for making you bring her back. Just however you would act if it was Sarah I was dragging into this. You know, minus any last-minute make-out scene or whatever. I doubt Tyler would appreciate that and I'd really hate to have to kill you in the middle of an operation."

Caleb nodded. "Right…"

Then she switched her gaze to Reid and sighed exasperatedly. "And the whole point of you being in the trunk is that the back seat comes down so you can get into the car without anyone noticing after I get out. And trust me, there's plenty of room. Jordan and I both fit in there at once. Don't ask how we know that."

"Fine. But if I get stuck in there… don't blame me for messing up your plan," Reid said, rumbling.

"Oh, if you mess up my plan, I'll kill you later because you're not gonna get stuck." Lyn paused and looked around at everybody. "Okay… Now I'm gonna put this on the line. There's a pretty freaking good chance even with this many of us that somebody might not come back. So if you're not okay with the idea that might be you, go ahead and tell me now so I can write you out of my plan. I don't need anybody wussing out at the last minute and getting more people killed."

Everyone met her gaze but no one said anything.

Lyn nodded. "Good. Now, the other thing… If any of them get away and back to the Mill, they'll know you're here and they'll send more next time. Maybe while you're asleep, maybe after your families; they're capable of anything. Now, I'm not gonna tell you that you have to kill anybody but at the very least you need to make sure they stick around long enough for me to be able to mess up all of their heads."


	15. Beauty and Despair

Disclaimer: Neither Jordan nor I own The Covenant or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N:

---

**15. Beauty and Despair**

Reid, his tall form smushed into the back of Lyn's GTO, lay here, internally grumbling. _How did I get talked into this? This is so uncomfortable. When this is over, I'm yelling at Lyn for guaranteeing that _two_ teenage girls can fit, so I can too…_

Jordan sat in the back of Lyn's car next to Caleb, sitting a little bit closer than was comfortable, since all she could think about was what they had done to Tyler or what they would do to him if this plan didn't work.

"Calm down," Lyn said quietly. "Pogue's already in place, Reid's hiding, and Kyle's gonna be thrown off as soon as he sees there's even one extra person. We've got surprise on our side."

"And they're all Ascended," Jordan pointed out quietly.

"And Kyle's in charge," Lyn half sneered. "I know how his mind works. Wait and see… He'll have two stakes, one for Tyler and one for you to try to coerce me into going quietly. He won't honestly expect that to work so he'll have called in another squad, which will be eleven guys now that Steve's out of commission. If it's Mark's squad, we're probably screwed, but he probably didn't think he would need Mark… Yeah, it'll be Raleigh and the dweebs because Kyle won't want to share the credit. He'll be confused when he sees Caleb so he won't bother to check the trunk. I know how he thinks; this will work."

"I hope you're right," Jordan whispered.

Lyn's jaw tightened as they approached the address Kyle had given. The place looked like it had once been a warehouse. Seeing no one out front, she pulled in behind where it was more shielded in case anyone walked by. And there, near what looked like it had once been a loading dock for tractor trailers, a group of men stood encircling two posts with wood piled high around them. Lyn's stomach lurched when she saw that Tyler was already tied to one, his arms behind his back.

"Stay calm, JJ," she hissed through her teeth. "They won't light it yet and we won't give them the chance."

Jordan had to bite her tongue and grab onto her own hand, squeezing to keep from running to him.

"Alright, take a deep breath and get out," Lyn added in an undertone. "And remember, you're with Caleb."

Turning off the engine, she stepped out of the car and slammed the door, her eyes on Kyle. "Alright, you cowardly slimeball; we're here. Now let. Him. Go."

Jordan stepped out of the car and grabbed Caleb's hand. "He has nothing to do with this, you asshole."

Kyle stared; several of the other men were murmuring to each other. "Who is _he_?" he snarled at last.

"I told you Jordan was already gone, stupid," Lyn snapped right back. "I had to call her and Caleb and get them to come back. Now let Tyler down _now_."

Reid slipped from the trunk to the back seat as quietly as possible, listening to the conversation and waiting for his cue.

Kyle smirked, trying to recover his confidence, unwilling to look weak in front of the others. "Oh, of course. Just as soon as you and Jordan come up here, slip on these nice little bracelets, and get in the truck," he said, dangling a couple of the plastic cuffs like police used on rioters from his fingers.

Lyn shook her head. "You cuff me and I get in. Then you let Tyler go. If you don't, Jordan and Caleb are gone."

Kyle considered that, his eyes narrowing. "Jordan won't leave you."

Lyn didn't flinch. "Caleb will. He's Ascended, she's not. He can get her out of here."

Jordan squeezed Caleb's hand, looking over at Tyler who was limp and motionless on the stake, her teeth clenched.

"I will," Caleb affirmed adamantly.

Kyle glared, his jaw clenched. Lyn could almost see the thoughts sifting through his mind. It was a little disgusting that she could still tell exactly what he was thinking.

"Fine," he snapped. "Dalton, untie the brat when she's in the truck. Vic, you make sure Jordan doesn't try to skip out on us once he's loose. Now, Lyndotia… You'd better hurry up here and be good. You don't want to get anybody else burned, now, do you?"

Lyn's jaw clenched. For a moment, her eyes slid out of focus and it was no longer these two stakes she was looking at. It was night in the woods of Coates, Tennessee and Lyn had been chasing Anne Chambers to try to stop her from walking into a trap. But Anne's older sister, Charlotte, had been captured and Lyn had been too late. By the time she had reached the break in the trees, the fires were already roaring, screams piercing the night. It was horrible, atrocious, but Lyn had been frozen at the edge of the clearing, unable to move until Scott had come and pulled her away.

Charlotte had been nineteen and Anne only fifteen.

Anne had also been Lyn's best friend.

Lyn had that look of being in a trance again as she walked slowly forward. She couldn't let that happen again but the horror wouldn't fade from before her eyes.

Jordan's lower lip trembled slightly as she watched her sister, her best friend, walk toward them. She jerked forward reflexively to stop it but Caleb wrapped an arm around her waist, holding her in place.

Kyle's smirk was confident and pleased as Lyn came to a stop a couple of feet in front of him. She had to look down at him because he was only about five foot five. His hair was dark and curly and cut short away from his face. Her eyes snapped to sudden clarity as they lit on his. They were dark blue but streaks of a lighter hue shot through them like lightning. She could see the evil in them clearly now; she wondered how she had ever found them beautiful.

"Celebrate while you can, Kyle," she said in a low, threatening tone. "Traitors burn the longest."

Kyle only smirked more broadly and wrenched her injured arm behind her first, hissing in her ear, "You're the one who looks like hell, baby."

"Hey! Whatchu assholes think you're doing here?!" Pogue demanded, sauntering up clad in his leather jacket, looking very much like a drug dealer, as he was supposed to.

Lyn snapped her head in his direction like she was surprised and Kyle tightened his grip on her arm but turned so the handcuffs in his other hand were hidden. "Who the hell are you?"

"Don't matter who _I_ am – this happens to be my turf, buddy," Pogue said, stepping past Caleb and Jordan who were both feigning surprise.

"If you hadn't noticed, you're a little outnumbered," Kyle snarled. "So I'd suggest you find some new turf for today if you know what's good for you."

Reid crept out of the car while Kyle was distracted and waited for Pogue's signal which came when he said, "I don't think so" and, along with Caleb, Jordan, and Reid, threw a burst of Power at Kyle, taking him by surprise and knocking him 20 feet backward.

Lyn was released from Kyle's grasp but slammed her already injured shoulder into the side of the truck. Jordan surged forward toward Lyn, eyes still black, and helped her up. "You okay?"

Caleb, Reid, and Pogue all came to stand next to the two girls, creating a makeshift defensive line.

"I'm fine," Lyn said grimly, slashing the ropes binding Tyler to the stake with a burst of Power and blocking an attack from one of the other warlocks with another. "Get him and get ready. This one's gonna suck."

Jordan rushed forward, being shielded by Caleb, and hauled him up, adrenaline giving her strength. She held him tight as she guided him back to the line and put him on the ground, standing in front of him like a lioness protecting her cub.

Jordan, Caleb, Pogue, and Reid all fought together, attacking warlock after warlock that came with bursts of power that seemed endless and sent many flying and into unconsciousness.

Kyle pushed himself to his feet with a snarl. "You little bitch!"

Lyn scoffed. "Now, I know I told you before I'm not your mom."

The next second, two bursts of power clashed as Lyn and Kyle both threw one at the same time. Both were knocked to the side and again picked themselves up, growling. Kyle tried again but Lyn slammed her hands together, sending a cascading wave that blocked his attack and sent him flying. She looked truly demonic with black eyes and a fierce expression on a face covered in blood as she stalked toward him, hissing, "You never did learn not to screw with somebody who has every reason to want you dead and nothing left to lose."

Kyle actually laughed. "You can't kill me, Lyndotia. You never could."

"You're insane."

"And you still love me."

There was no split second of frozen silence like in action movies. There was no strike of lightning reflecting in anyone's eyes. There was just a sudden explosion of Power – not a strike but a slash, clean and efficient as an invisible blade. A deep red line appeared on the blue cloth of Kyle's uniform, stretching across his chest from his shoulder to his hip.

"You?!" she thundered in a voice beyond madness, continuing to direct strikes by swiping her hand in front of her like a sword. "You killed my brother! You destroyed an entire safe village! You murdered innocent children because they would grow up to possess a Power you wouldn't be able to control!"

Kyle fell and still Lyn advanced, her eyes black and beyond reason. "Just like you," he breathed, voice barely audible. "You know that, Lyndi? You were the ultimate uncontrollable power. Like a storm… powerful… beautiful… dangerous… unpredictable…"

Lyn hadn't realized she had stopped until he smiled feebly up at her. "And I couldn't make you love me again."

"That happens when the one person you've ever trusted sticks a knife between your ribs." For some reason she wasn't quite sane enough at the moment to understand, Lyn wasn't surprised to find that her voice was a low whisper.

Kyle's eyes were closed now; he didn't have the strength left to keep them open. "Yeah, I did. I told you once you were the only thing that could bring out the good in me, Lyndi. And this… will be the best that's ever come from me."

"You're a self-important scumbag, you know that?" Lyn said, but she didn't bother raising her voice. He couldn't hear her anymore anyway.

That was when her eyes caught the glitter in his open palm. Wordlessly, she reached down to pick it up even though she knew what she would see. Knew how she was about to react. But couldn't stop it.

She stood up with the ring he had given her once before in her fingers. The ring she had thrown at him when she caught him with Sherry Marshall. The ring he had died holding.

The fury and guilt exploded all at once. It was her fault, all of this. The pain and death. The loss and suffering. Every person Kyle had killed at the village in Minoa. Scott and her mother. Everything because she had unleashed a monster.

Jordan watched Kyle die and Lyn pick up the glittering ring from her kneeling position on the ground next to Tyler.

"Lyn, you okay?" She got up and walked over to her sister, putting a hand on her shoulder.

Lyn abruptly whirled and threw the ring hard toward the warehouse, her eyes black voids. It cut straight through the metal siding then a second later exploded with the force of a bomb, knocking the warehouse doors outward.

Without a word, she threw off Jordan's hand and started for her car. The lone warlock left standing moved to intercept her and a second later, she stabbed him in the throat with one of the keys in her hand. She didn't pause, didn't even look at him, just continued to the car and, as soon as the engine came to life, pealed out, already approaching 80 mph by the time she got out of sight.


	16. Reunion

Disclaimer: Neither Jordan nor I own The Covenant or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N:

---

**16. Reunion**

Jordan stood stock still for about a minute until she felt a hand on her shoulder.

"Jordan, Tyler's starting to come to," Caleb said gently.

Jordan's head whipped around to see, sure enough, Tyler's form moving slightly on the ground. "Pogue, can you go look in the pockets of these warlocks and see if anyone has car keys?" she said softly as she knelt down beside Tyler, pushing sweat-matted hair off his forehead.

"Yeah. Reid, Caleb, come help me – give these two some time," Pogue said.

Reid stopped staring after Lyn and went to help Caleb and Pogue's search. "Dude… The hell was that all about?"

"That was her ex-boyfriend she just killed, Reid," Pogue said, slightly annoyed by Reid's minor idiocy.

Reid blinked and seemed to have a revelation. It looked like painful work for him. "_That's_ why she's such an ice queen!"

Tyler's eyes opened slowly and then he blinked like he was confused. "Jordan?"

Jordan smiled warmly. "Yeah. How you feeling?"

"Like a bunch of warlocks all decided to use on me at the same time," Tyler said, managing to crack a smile. "Where'd you come from?"

"Kyle called us. He had you tied to a stake," Jordan explained, punching at the memory still fresh in her mind. "Lyn killed him. Caleb, Pogue, Reid, and I fought off the others. And here we are. And we need a car, so the guys are over there looking for car keys."

Tyler blinked, not understanding. "How'd you get here without a car?"

Jordan smiled wryly. "Lyn took off."

"Oh. Sorry. She'll come back, won't she?"

"I'm not sure. She's pretty upset."

"Sorry… but thanks. Everybody's okay, right?"

"Yeah, everyone's fine."

Tyler hesitated. "And how long do we stay fine? They'll send more, won't they?"

"I don't know. But whatever happens, we'll deal with it."

Tyler smiled softly and kissed her. "Yeah, we will."

There were three simultaneous coughs that broke apart Jordan and Tyler's kiss. "Uh, we found some keys and the trucks are in this lot. We put Kyle and the guy Lyn stabbed in the neck in the back of the other truck and the ones who are still alive in the one we're taking… so, uh…" Reid gestured to the two. "Time to break it up…"

"Good, then next time, you can volunteer to be the one they're threatening to burn to death," Tyler muttered as he slowly picked himself up off the ground.

Jordan helped him stand up and glared at the blond warlock. "You're an asshole, Reid…"

"Why does everybody keep telling me that?" Reid complained. "C'mon… I always wanted to drive a prison truck…"

"Yeah, it'll be an experience – we always figured you'd be riding in the back of one," Tyler said. "How are we all gonna fit, anyway?"

Jordan's right eyebrow rose. "I dunno. Tyler, I think you're gonna have to sit on Reid's lap…"

"I think I'd rather ride in the back with the homicidal warlocks," Tyler said dryly. "How about you sit on my lap? Then Caleb and Pogue can fight over which of them gets to sit on the other."

"I wouldn't be opposed to the idea," Jordan said, grinning.

"I've got my bike," Pogue said. "I'm gonna go back to the dorms and wash up. It's been a long night."

"Yeah, alright," Reid said, climbing into the car after Jordan had settled herself onto Tyler's lap.

Once the others had driven off, Pogue started up his bike and headed in the opposite direction – the way Lyn gone earlier.

---

Lyn hadn't actually gone that far. She had only gone a few miles before she calmed down enough to realize that she was in no state to drive. Then she had pulled into an empty field on the side of the road, toppled a few trees to vent her anger, and finally laid down on the hood of her car, staring unseeingly up at the stars and feeling hopeless. What else could she feel when, everywhere she went, a path of destruction followed?

Pogue spotted Lyn and the car and pulled over, leaving his motorcycle a few feet away and walking to her, taking off his helmet as he went. He simply got up on the hood with her, not saying a word because he knew that no words could console her right now.

There was a long silence before she finally spoke, her voice low, eyes never leaving the sky. She didn't have to look to know who it was. "You really ought to leave, you know. Before you end up dead, too." It wasn't a threat; her voice was too empty for that. Just a simple observation that she tended to get people around her killed.

"I'm not going anywhere. And if that gets me killed, then so be it," Pogue replied matter-of-factly.

Lyn sighed softly. "Why did you come?"

"I wanted to make sure you were okay."

"What's your definition of 'okay'?"

"I know that it includes nothing that you're feeling right now. And that's okay."

Lyn smiled faintly. "It's okay that I'm not okay? Isn't that kind of circular logic?"

"Maybe a little bit." Pogue smiled then propped himself up on one arm. "But you don't have to be okay all the time, you know. Sometimes it's just okay to be down."

"I'm not down. I'm disgusted." Lyn's forehead wrinkled. "Everyone Kyle killed in the past year is dead because he couldn't get to me. Keeping them from killing Tyler doesn't make up for that. It doesn't even come close."

"It's not your fault that he was a psychopath, Lyn. Don't blame yourself for _his_ mistakes."

Lyn chuckled darkly and closed her eyes. "Yeah, I guess. Not like I don't have plenty of mistakes of my own to blame myself for."

"Hey. Don't talk about yourself like that," Pogue said, reaching out a hand toward her but stopping halfway and pulling his hand back.

Lyn sighed and met his eyes. "You think I'm any better than Kyle? Do you have any idea what _I've_ done to stay alive? How many people _I've_ killed?" She shook her head and looked back at the sky, muttering as if to herself, "How many things I can't forget…?"

"Hey, look at me." Pogue gently laid a hand on her shoulder, sitting up completely. "You did what you had to do when you were being hunted by a bunch of murderers."

Lyn smiled sadly as she sat up too. "Maybe. Maybe if I hadn't been a witch, I would have stayed in one place and gone to school and never had to watch people die or kill them myself. But there's just one problem with that, isn't there? I'll never know because that's not how it works."

"Yeah, I guess you're right."

"So then there's no point pretending I'm not as bad as they are. I just had different reasons. They probably thought theirs were just as valid."

Pogue sighed, just looking at Lyn for a moment before leaning forward and kissing her abruptly. Lyn froze, her eyes widening in surprise then closing as she returned the kiss. She hadn't expected it somehow, even after he had shown up here tonight when no one else had, but right now, it felt _right_.

But it wasn't, her conscience objected. It wasn't right to pull Pogue into this. Without her, he could have a normal life, the life she had never had the chance at.

He knew that, though, didn't he? He knew what her life had been like. Maybe not every detail about it, but more than anyone else who had never lived it. And it was so hard to argue that she shouldn't let herself get close to him with her hand on the back of his neck and his lips on hers.

Pogue pulled back slowly, one hand holding him upright on the car, the other on her cheek, and whispered, "I'm so glad I finally did that…"

Lyn's eyes were locked on his now as if to make up for all the time she had wasted staring at the sky earlier and her smile was soft but genuine now. "So am I."


	17. A Quiet Night for a Change

Disclaimer: Neither Jordan nor I own The Covenant or any of the copyrighted stuff.

A/N: Lyn: And… the happily ever after!

Jordan: Sort of.

Lyn: Yeah. We may be convinced to do a sequel.

Jordan: Maybe. If you're lucky and ask nicely.

Lyn: XD Nah, we probably will anyway. But for now… enjoy the ending!

---

**17. A Quiet Night for a Change**

Somehow it felt kind of odd to Lyn to be back in Nicky's now. It had been two days since she had killed Kyle and Pogue had followed her when she had sped off. It had taken the better part of a day to safely erase the memories of those warlocks who hadn't been killed but she was getting better at it; she could do it without passing out now, at least.

Maybe it was the fact that the Mill had caught up with her and she hadn't been forced to move on that felt so odd. Or maybe it was just that she had thought she wasn't capable anymore of feeling that tingle of electricity when Pogue's arm on the back of her chair brushed her skin. Things were definitely changing… for now, anyway.

Pogue leaned down to whisper in her ear, "You want something to eat?"

There was that electric charge running down Lyn's spine again; it took effort not to shudder. When she looked at his eyes, it only got worse. She really had been suppressing her emotions for too long. But because of that she was good at it so none of this showed as she got a thoughtful expression and smiled faintly. "I could eat some fries or something."

"How about a burger and fries? They've got the best ones around," Pogue said, watching her expression and smiling at her own soft smile.

Lyn chuckled quietly. "Alright, you twisted my arm."

He kissed her softly. "Be right back," he promised then walked over to the bar to order food.

"Lyn! You two are adorable together!" Jordan hissed excitedly in Lyn's ear.

If Lyn hadn't had eighteen years worth of training in controlling her reactions, she would have blushed at that. Instead, she shoved her sister in the shoulder. "Adorable? Seriously? The last person who applied the adjective 'adorable' to me ate his front teeth, kid."

"Yeah, but I'm your sister… You won't hit me," Jordan said sweetly.

Lyn's eyes narrowed threateningly. "Maybe not, but I just might decide to start telling summer camp stories…"

"Fine, I'll stop," Jordan said, looking at Tyler playing foosball with Caleb about ten feet away. "But you guys make a really awesome couple, I'm just saying."

Lyn dropped the feigned annoyance and put on a serious, worried sort of expression that no one but Jordan really ever got to see. "… You don't think it's selfish of me, do you?" she half whispered. "I mean… I know I've told him how it's been for us, but you know you don't really understand until you've been there… and he's in danger as long as he's around me and…" She sneaked a quick look at Pogue over her shoulder. "He just deserves better than that."

"Lyn, just shut up and do something for _yourself_ for once. You deserve him and he deserves you and I don't think it's selfish of you to be with him. He knows the risks and he's chosen to ignore then because he wants to be with you."

"I know," Lyn said with a sigh, closing her eyes and shaking her head. "I just… I don't think I can take it if I get anybody else hurt or killed. Especially Pogue."

"Whatever comes out way, the six of us will handle it," Jordan said, smiling slightly.

Lyn nodded but her eyes were far away. Six sounded like good odds but they had faced the Mill with more fighters than that and still come up short. It was hard to be optimistic while thinking about the destruction of an entire safe village.

Pogue returned with two burger and fries baskets. "Here ya go." He smiled and kissed her cheek as he sat down, smiling until he glanced at the door quickly and his smile faltered as he sighed.

"Thanks," Lyn said with a smile that turned into a frown when he sighed. "What's wrong?"

"Kate."

Lyn followed his gaze to see the pretty dark-skinned girl glaring at her out of the corner of her eyes. "… Ah… I see…" But she didn't really and she suddenly felt cold inside. Was he having second thoughts?

"She's up to something; I know that look." He practically spat out the words despite keeping his expression calm.

This time Lyn really did look confused. "Wait… you're worried about Kate? Why?"

"Who knows what she's gonna try and do…"

Lyn laughed then. Really, honestly laughed as if that was the funniest thing she had ever heard. "_Kate_? Really? Pogue, the day Kate is the worst of my worries, I will be so happy I'll throw a party for the event."

Pogue looked from Kate to Lyn with a grin. "Well, if you aren't worried, then I guess I shouldn't be either, huh?"

He leaned forward to kiss her but a cough from Jordan stopped him. "Heh… This is kind of awkward so I'll just… go… over there… right now." And with that, she got up and walked over to the jukebox to look for a song.

Lyn just made a face at her sister's retreating back. "Please, I never quoted bad escape lines from TV shows when you were all over Tyler!"

Jordan turned around, bright red, as people started laughing, but kept walking quickly to the jukebox as if it were her sanctuary. Pogue laughed too and finally leaned forward and kissed Lyn softly, smiling as he pulled back. "I'm glad I followed you."

When he smiled, Lyn couldn't help but smile too. "So am I." _Except when I worry I'm going to get you killed… but we're in the middle of a bar with half of Spenser Academy around. Nobody in the Mill is stupid enough to try anything here. Tonight, you're safe. Tomorrow… I guess I'll deal with when it comes._

Jordan picked a Lynyrd Skynyrd song on the jukebox and turned around, walking over to Tyler and Caleb and leaning against the foosball table next to Tyler. "Having fun?"

"Has Sarah been giving you lessons in distraction or something?" Caleb asked with a laugh.

"Sorry man but I don't think Sarah's this good at it," Tyler said, grinning.

Jordan smirked. "It's a gift."

Tyler's grin just broadened. "Then should we go before someone else hijacks the song?"

"Absolutely." Jordan grabbed his hand and led him to the dance floor where a few other couples were gathering and began to dance, her hips shaking to the beat of the music, her hands thrown in the air.

Tyler had a hard time focusing enough to remember how to dance himself. "Did I ever mention you're gorgeous when you dance? And pretty much all the time, actually?"

Jordan grinned, throwing an arm over his shoulder. "You charmer." And, without missing a beat, she kissed him, still dancing.

Tyler returned the kiss, his hands moving to rest on her hips and move with them to the beat. Suddenly he found himself wishing he had the ability to freeze time. He would definitely be more than happy living here, in this moment, forever.


End file.
